Abstract
The colorimetric sensor array (CSA) is a simple, rapid, and cost-effective system widely used in food science to assess food quality by identifying undesirable volatile organic compounds. As a prospective alternative to conventional techniques such as total volatile basic nitrogen, peroxide value, and thiobarbituric acid reactive substance analysis, the CSA system has garnered significant attention. This study evaluated the quality of edible-coated food products using both conventional and CSA methods in order to demonstrate that the CSA approach is a feasible alternative to conventional methods. Boiled-dried anchovies (BDA) were selected as the model food product, and the sample's quality was assessed as a function of storage temperature and incubation period using conventional techniques and the CSA system. The surface of BDA was coated with an edible alginate film to form the surface-modified food product. The conventional methods revealed that an increase in storage temperature and incubation time accelerated the lipid oxidation process, with the uncoated BDA undergoing lipid oxidation at a faster rate than the coated BDA. Utilizing multivariate statistical analysis, the CSA approach essentially yielded the same results. In addition, the partial least square regression technique revealed a strong correlation between the CSA system and conventional methods, indicating that the CSA system may be a feasible alternative to existing methods for evaluating the quality of food products with surface modifications.