Preparationof Konjac Glucomannan-Based Composite Films Loaded with Hydroxypropyl-β-Cyclodextrin/Hesperetin Inclusion Complex and Their Preservation Effect on Strawberries

A KGM/CMC/PVA film loaded with a hydroxypropy-β-cyclodextrin/hesperetin (HP-β-CD/HES) inclusion complex was developed for strawberry preservation. The inclusion complex showed an encapsulation efficiency of 70.41 ± 4.01%. Loading the inclusion complex enhanced the barrier and bioactive properties of the films. At the better loading level (KCP-HH3, 1.5%), the film provided nearly complete UV shielding at 200–350 nm and showed a transmittance of approximately 21% at 800 nm. Relative to KCP, KCP-HH3 exhibited lower water vapor permeability (0.69 ± 0.06 g·mm/(m2·h·kPa)) and oxygen permeability (0.066 ± 0.006 g·mm/(m2·h·kPa)). The cumulative HES release from KCP-HH3 reached 82.43 ± 2.19% after 7 days at 98% relative humidity. KCP-HH3 scavenged 78.19 ± 3.71% of DPPH radicals and 88.89 ± 4.30% of ABTS radicals. It also inhibited Escherichia coli (91.18 ± 2.99%), Staphylococcus aureus (79.21 ± 3.45%), and Aspergillus niger (92.85 ± 2.75%). This highest-loading formulation delivered the best overall strawberry-preservation performance. After 12 days of storage, strawberries packaged with KCP-HH3 showed higher firmness (0.89 ± 0.04 N) and total soluble solids (7.96 ± 0.21%), as well as lower weight loss (14.30 ± 0.40%), than the polyethylene control, which showed a firmness of 0.42 ± 0.05 N, total soluble solids of 6.22 ± 0.20%, and weight loss of 16.36 ± 0.66%. These results support the potential of HP-β-CD/HES-loaded KCP films as biodegradable active packaging for fruit preservation.