Controlling Fusarium acuminatum Rot on Saladette Tomato Fruit Through Hybrid Films Containing Cymbopogon citratus Essential Oil

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Herein, we report on Fusarium acuminatum as a potential postharvest phytopathogen of saladette tomato fruit ( Solanum lycopersicum ) and its ex situ control through hybrid films made of chitosan and Cymbopogon citratus essential oil. GC‐MS analysis revealed that C. citratus essential oil contained geranial (38.7%), neral (36.9%), and beta‐myrcene (11.3%) as major compounds with a minimum inhibitory concentration of 2.1 mg/mL against F. acuminatum . According to scanning electron microscopy and FT‐IR tests, hybrid films made of chitosan and 1%–1.5% C. citratus essential oil exhibited a homogeneous surface and internal composition while also conserving bioactive functional groups from monoterpenes linked to antifungal activity. These composites also had moderate opacity (OD 600 = 50–100) and low transmittance at 190–490 nm, which are required to repel UV‐C and UV‐B light associated with fruit decay. Under ex situ conditions, tomatoes covered with films made of chitosan and 1–1.5% C. citratus essential oil substantially reduced ( p < 0.001) severity percentage (< 5%) of F. acuminatum infection on inoculated fruit, inducing notable conservation ( p < 0.001) of firmness and lycopene content compared to films made of sole chitosan, untreated healthy fruits, and specially with untreated infected tomatoes.