Incorporation of Bifidobacterium breve in sodium caseinate-edible film: Physicochemical properties, viability, and antibacterial activity

The addition of probiotic bacteria creates added value to food products wrapped with edible film. Hence, this study aimed to develop sodium caseinate (NaCas) edible film containing Bifidobacterium breve. The edible film was prepared by using different NaCas concentrations (2%–6% wt/vol), glycerol, and B. breve suspension (1% vol/vol). The edible film without probiotics was used as a control film. The optimized 3% (wt/vol) NaCas-B. breve edible film had a viable cell count of 7.07 log₁₀ CFU/g, thickness of 0.16 mm, 63.50% water solubility, 14.04% moisture content, the color difference (ΔE) <2.59, 3.31 mPa tensile strength, 35.73% elongation at break, and 0.10 mPa Young's modulus. Furthermore, the NaCas-B. breve edible film had also shown inhibition against Escherichia coli, Klebsiella pneumoniae, and Salmonella enterica. The desirable physicochemical properties, high viability, and antibacterial properties of 3% (wt/vol) NaCas-B. breve edible films may enable their future use as bioactive packaging for food products.