Antimicrobial, antioxidant and sensory features of eugenol, carvacrol and trans-anethole in active packaging for organic ready-to-eat iceberg lettuce

•Novel EUG, CAR and ANT bio-based emitting sachets were tested for organic RTE lettuce.•Antimicrobial, antioxidant and sensorial features were in the following sequence ANT > EUG > CAR.•Tested systems demonstrated potential as alternative solutions for organic food packaging. In this study, bio-based emitting sachets containing eugenol (EUG), carvacrol (CAR) and trans-anethole (ANT) were inserted into cellulose (CE) and polypropylene (PP) pillow packages of organic ready-to-eat (RTE) iceberg lettuce to investigate their functional features. EUG, CAR and ANT sachets in CE; and CAR in PP packages showed antimicrobial activities against coliforms (Δlog CFU g–1 of −1.38, −0.91, −0.93 and −0.93, respectively). EUG and ANT sachets in both packages reduced discoloration (ΔE of 9.5, 1.8, 9.4 and 5.6, respectively). ANT in both, and EUG only in PP packages induced biosynthesis of caffeoyl derivatives (CaTA, DiCaTA, DiCaQA), total phenolics and antioxidant activity (FRAP). Also, ANT and EUG in both packages improved overall freshness and odor. Principal component analysis separated ANT and EUG from CAR in both packages. The Pearson correlation confirmed that overall quality improvements were more pronounced by ANT inside the packages in comparison to EUG and CAR.