Identification of chemical compounds of Foeniculum vulgare essential oil, antioxidant power, and its antifungal effect on postharvest grape spoilage molds

Grape is a very perishable fruit that has a short shelf life. Due to the increase in consumer awareness, the tendency to use natural preservative compounds instead of pesticides and chemical preservatives has increased. Plant essential oils are considered to be the most appropriate natural compounds due to their potentially effective compounds. Therefore, the aim of this research was to identify the chemical compounds of Foeniculum vulgare essential oil, determine its phenolic and flavonoid content, and investigate the antioxidant and antifungal activity of this essential oil against a number of molds that cause spoilage after grape fruit harvesting. The compounds identified in F. vulgare essential oil included limonene, fenchone, p-allylanisole and anethole, which made up 97.60% of the total essential oil. The total phenol content of F. vulgare essential oil was equal to 26.29 mg GAE/g and the total flavonoid content was equal to 19.23 mg QE/g. The antioxidant properties of the essential oil of this plant were obtained by DPPH, ABTS and beta-carotene-linoleic acid decolorization methods, respectively, 38.56, 42.12, and 30.30%. Also, , it was found that Foeniculum vulgare essential oil is capable of inhibiting and controlling Rhizopus stolonifera, Aspergillus niger, and Botrytis cinerea. Due to the antimicrobial and antioxidant compounds present in F. vulgare, the essential oil of this plant can be used as a compound with practical properties to increase the shelf life of agricultural products, including grapes.