HS-GC-IMS identification of volatile aromatic compounds of freshly-cooked rice packaged with different disposable lunchboxes

The rapid development of online-to-offline food delivery service has necessitated the replacement of plastic lunchbox using biodegradable ones. In current study, a total number of fourteen panelists were firstly recruited and trained to investigate how different commercial disposable lunchboxes affect the freshly cooked rice sensory properties during heat preservation (60 °C, 60 min). The lunchboxes were made of pure polypropylene (PP), polypropylene-starch (PP-S), pure wheat-straw and sugarcane-straw (WS & SS) and Paper. The discrepancy of volatile aromatic substances was then analyzed using headspace-gas chromatography-ion mobility spectrometry (HS-GC-IMS) to study the possible mechanism beneath the variations of the influences of different lunchboxes on the aromatic properties of rice. Results showed that, compared with the textural attributes, the aroma was significantly and positively correlated with panelist's acceptability, among which, the aroma of starchy, sulfur and smoky are the most important ones. The moisture absorption plays an important role in affecting the aromatic characteristics of the packaged rice. While all lunchboxes have inhibitory effects on the production of volatile flavor substances including 2,6-Dimethylpyrazine, 2-Acetylpyrazine and γ-Octalactone, pure PP and PP-S lunchboxes generated undesirable flavor substances including 2-Ethyl-1-hexanl and Camphene, and thus reduced panelist's preferences. It was also found that the panelist liked the rice packaged by Paper lunchbox the best because of its better performance in maintaining the aroma of starchy and sulfur, the two substances that are associated with the higher concentration of ethereal and fruity volatile flavor substances. This study provides important information for manufacturers to understand how different disposable lunchboxes may impact the textural and aromatic properties of packaged foods.