How should fruits be wrapped before refrigeration?

Unlike vegetables, fruits can be tightly wrapped because they are too acidic for the bacteria that cause botulism to grow on them. However, for other reasons, some fruits should be only loosely wrapped. Fruits that “transpire” (give off) a lot of moisture (berries especially) are commonly store-wrapped in a manner that allows the moisture to escape. If fruits transpire moisture into an airtight atmosphere, bacteria (ones that don’t cause disease) will grow and make the fruit slimy. Also, some fruits produce large amounts of ethylene gas, which stimulates ripening. Allowing this gas to escape from the package slows the ripening process. If berries are not in perforated plastic, puncture some holes in the package.

Packaging fruits in environments that don’t contain oxygen has this advantage: mold requires oxygen to grow, so air-tight packaging prevents that. Sometimes fruits are packaged in modified atmosphere packaging in which the air has been replaced with carbon dioxide and/or nitrogen, thereby eliminating the oxygen.

Fresh-cut fruits should either have the cut surface covered in an airtight manner (with plastic film) or be placed cut surface down in a plastic container or on a plate. This prevents dehydration (melons), discoloration (apples and peaches), mold growth (most fruits), and vitamin loss.    

Source(s): Susan Brewer, Ph.D., University of Illinois, Dept. of Food Science and Human Nutrition

Virginia Cooperative Extension “Food Storage Guidelines for Consumers”

http://pubs.ext.vt.edu/348/348-960/348-960.html

General Guidelines for Wrapping Foods

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