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Active paper packaging containing a cinnamon coating will inhibit the growth of black bread mould on white bread, according to Spanish research.

Active packaging, using methods such as oxygen scavenging, is specifically designed to change the condition of packed food to extend shelf-life, improve safety or enhance sensory properties. It can control, and even react to, events taking place inside the package.

Researchers at the University of Zaragoza, who reported their findings in the Journal of Agriculture and Food Chemistry, found that solid wax paraffin incorporating cinnamaldehyde-fortified cinnamon essential oil in an active coating formulation was an efficient antimicrobial coating for paper or board packaging.

They claimed that there was almost no mould growth after storing white bread for three days using 6% of cinnamon essential oil in the packaging.