The success of gas packaging as a preservation
technique is due to a number of inter-related factors
specifically, the level of microbial contamination,
storage temperature, level of residual oxygen
in the package headspace, packaging integrity and
gas barrier characteristics of the packaging material.
This latter parameter is important since the
oxygen transmission rate (OTR) of barrier films is
influenced by the storage environment, particularly
relative humidity and storage temperature
(Ellis, 1993). Furthermore, many aerobic spoilage
bacteria and molds have been shown to grow in
relatively low concentrations of oxygen (0.5-l .O%)
even in the presence of inhibitory levels of carbon
dioxide (Dallyn & Everton, 1969; Smith et al.,
1986). These low levels of headspace oxygen can
readily be reached in the package headspace due
to permeation of oxygen through the packaging
film (Smith et al., 1986). However, there is a lack
of data on the influence of the OTR of films on
aflatoxin production in products packaged under
MAP conditions.