Application of antimicrobial edible film incorporated with Caulerpa racemosa crude extract as active packaging of seaweed dodol

Using seaweed-based antimicrobial edible films containing antimicrobial seaweed extracts in food products has maintained product quality during storage. Caulerpa extracts have the potential to be antimicrobial and antioxidant agents. However, no research has been conducted regarding applying Caulerpa extract edible film to semi-wet food products, especially seaweed dodol. This study examines changes in the chemical composition and shelf life of seaweed dodol packaged with antimicrobial edible films made from agar added with crude extract of Caulerpa racemosa. The study employed a completely randomized design with two variables: packaging type and storage duration. The packaging types included an unpackaged (control), an antimicrobial edible coating (AEC), and the antimicrobial edible film (AEF), while the storage period was set to 6 days. The observed research parameters included changes in chemical quality and total microbes. Data on changes in the composition of free fatty acids and total plate numbers are also used to calculate shelf life. The results showed that using AEF as the primary packaging of seaweed dodol can inhibit changes in chemical composition during storage, especially moisture, carbohydrates and fats. The barrier to moisture and oxygen from AEF inhibits the chemical composition deterioration of the coated food product, which has an impact on increasing the product's shelf life. Seaweed dodol packaged with AEF demonstrated an extended shelf life by 2 days compared to both the control and AEC-packaged samples. Antimicrobial edible film of crude extract of C. racemosa has the potential to be developed as primary packaging in semi-wet food products.