Comparative effects of plastic, banana-leaf and rubber-leaf packaging on the physicochemical, antioxidant, sensory and untargeted chemical profiles of fermented glutinous rice (tapai).

BACKGROUND: Tapai is commonly fermented in lidded plastic containers or leaf wraps, but direct comparisons of these complete packaging systems remain limited. This study compared plastic, banana-leaf, and rubber-leaf packaging for white glutinous rice (tapai) fermented for 48 h under the same preparation conditions. RESULTS: Packaging affected pH, total soluble solids, and moisture (P < 0.05). Plastic-packaged tapai had the lowest pH (4.03 ± 0.02), the highest soluble-solids value (45.33 ± 0.47 °Brix), and the greatest moisture content (506.4 ± 18.8 g kg-1). Rubber-leaf tapai had the highest total phenolic content (1.71 ± 0.02 g gallic acid equivalents kg-1), whereas the plastic treatment had the lowest DPPH IC50 (9.05 ± 1.00 g L-1) and the highest FRAP response (0.27 ± 0.01 mmol Trolox equivalents L-1). Attenuated total reflectance Fourier transform infrared spectra showed treatment-associated differences in several functional-group regions. Liquid chromatography-quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry detected shared and treatment-specific exact-mass features, which were conservatively reported as tentative annotations. Overall acceptability was similar among treatments, although liking of alcoholic aroma differed (P < 0.05). CONCLUSION: The three packaging systems produced measurably different 48 h tapai while maintaining comparable overall consumer acceptance. Plastic favoured moisture retention and stronger responses in the two antioxidant assays, while rubber-leaf wrapping gave the highest total phenolic result. These findings support packaging choice as a practical means of tailoring tapai characteristics and establish a focused basis for confirmatory chemical and broader consumer studies. © 2026 Society of Chemical Industry.