Your fresh spaghetti going pasta use-by date (sorry) could be about to change forever, thanks to Italian scientists.
In a move that will not only extend fresh pasta’s shelf life by a month but also reduce food waste, found that adding probiotics could be key, as well changing product packaging.
The research, published recently in the journal Frontiers in Microbiology, explained that most companies use a process called modified atmosphere packaging (MAP) to preserve pasta, where heat is used to remove the oxygen from packaging.
The new process changes the ratio of MAP gases that replace this removed oxygen. Bacterial growth can also be controlled better thanks to a different combination of plastic films used in the pasta packaging.
The team also added a multi-strain probiotic mixture to fresh pasta to curb the growth of bacteria.
Italian scientists tested their theory on a thin, twisted pasta type called 'trofie', and compared how long it lasted compared to normal packaging.
The new combination of probiotics and packaging changes was found to help the pasta last for 30 days longer - with the total shelf life in some cases reaching 120 days.
There’s more to work to be done according to the team, but the hope is that use-by dates on the dinner essential could soon be a thing of the past(a).