Folasade Kemisola Olufemi-Salami¹ , Olufemi Samson Salami² , John Isa³ , Omolola Victoria Adefela¹ , Mary Anuoluwapo Ajatta¹

1 Department of Food Science and Technology, Bamidele Olumilua University of Education, Science and Technology, Ikere, P.M.B. 250, Ikere-Ekiti State, Nigeria
2 Department of Biotechnology and Molecular Biology, Federal University of Health Science, Ila-Orangun, P.M.B. 204, Osun State, Nigeria
3 Department of Agricultural and Environmental Engineering, Federal University of Technology, Akure, P.M.B. 704, Ondo State, Nigeria
Author    Correspondence author
Plant Gene and Trait, 2026, Vol. 17, No. 4   doi: 10.5376/pgt.2026.17.0018
Received: 10 Jul., 2026    Accepted: 12 Aug., 2026    Published: 22 Aug., 2026

This is an open access article published under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

Olufemi-Salami F.K., Salami O.S., ISA J., Adefela O.V., and Ajatta M.A., 2026, Effects of polyethylene color and thickness on the retention of some minerals, vitamins, and antioxidant activities of stored plantain (Musa paradisiaca) Flour, Plant Gene and Trait, 17(4): 255-263 (doi: 10.5376/pgt.2026.17.0018)

Food packaging is critical for sustaining nutritional and functional quality of stored food. Polyethylene serves as a major packaging material in food industries. However, empirical evidence regarding how specific polyethylene characteristics dictate micronutrient stability during storage remains scarce. This study evaluated the effects of polyethylene color (black vs. transparent) and gauge thickness (0.03 mm vs. 0.15 mm) on the retention of essential minerals (Fe, Ca, Zn, P), vitamins, and antioxidant properties in stored plantain flour. French plantain (Musa paradisiaca) fruits were obtained, processed into flour. Samples of flour were packaged and stored under ambient conditions of 25 ± 5 ℃ temperature and 75 ± 5% relative humidity for 4 weeks in the laboratory. After the storage period, standard assays were used to quantify Fe, Ca, Zn, P, vitamins, and antioxidant properties in stored plantain flour. The results showed that both packaging color and thickness significantly influenced (p < 0.05) nutrient retention in the stored flours. Vitamin B6 was better preserved in black high-density polyethylene (BHP), whereas vitamin B9 stability was maximized in transparent high-density polyethylene (THP). Flour stored in transparent low-density polyethylene (TLP) exhibited the highest 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) radical scavenging activity (664.65 mg/kg) but the lowest total phenolic content (36.86 mg/kg). The preservation of Fe, Ca, and P was observed to be better in BHP. These findings demonstrate that no single packaging configuration optimally preserved the entire nutritional indices monitored; rather, packaging optimization must be strategically aligned with the specific target micronutrients of interest.

 

Polyethylene; Color; Vitamins; Antioxidant activities; Plantain flour