Assessment of the secondary shelf life of Bolognese sauce based on domestic use simulation

Household food waste contributes significantly to global food waste throughout the food supply chain, resulting in a substantial waste of resources. The inability of consumers to utilize food before it spoils generally leads to its disposal, thus representing one of the causes of food waste. The secondary shelf life (SSL) is the period a product should be consumed within once open, specified in the label, which sometimes is extremely short and may lead to a significant amount of discarded food. This study focuses on evaluating the SSL of Bolognese sauce through domestic use simulation and monitoring its microbiological and sensory quality, to explore the potential extension of the SSL, allowing consumers more time to consume the product. Results show that, even under harsh usage conditions, Bolognese sauce can have a SSL longer than 13 days, 2–3 times longer than the current SSL. The results highlight the influence of consumer behavior in determining the SSL, suggesting that improved food management could further reduce household food waste