Optimization of agar and glycerol concentration in the manufacture of edible film

Optimization of the formulation in the manufacture of edible film is necessary to obtain the optimum concentration of base materials and plasticizer. The research was aimed to determine the optimum concentration of agar and glycerol in the manufacture of agar-based edible film. The experiment was conducted using central composite design with three levels and five center points. The middle value for each treatment was 3% for agar and 10% for glycerol. The lower and upper limits for each treatment were 2% and 4% for agar, and 6% and 14% for glycerol. The response values of the edible film were thickness, moisture, solubility and mechanical properties. The verification of the optimum formulation is repeated three times. The optimum formulation verification data were analyzed using T test. The results showed that the optimum formulation to manufacture edible film was 2.75% agar and 6.80% glycerol with 0.98 of the desirability values. The verification of the optimum formulation on laboratory scale produced edible film was better than the results of the simulation program in terms of thickness, moisture content, solubility, and Young modulus