Recent advances in metal-organic frameworks (MOFs)-based colorimetric sensors for visual detection of food freshness

Harmful substances, such as volatile organic amines and biogenic amines released during food spoilage, pose a significant threat to food quality and safety and directly impact consumer health and well-being. Therefore, the exploration and development of efficient and reliable detection technologies for food freshness have become a crucial component in safeguarding public health and maintaining market order. Metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) are a new generation of crystalline porous materials characterized by their hole-like structures, formed through coordination bonds between metal ions or clusters and organic ligands. Due to their exceptional sensitivity, intuitive visual effects, user-friendly operation, and cost-effectiveness, MOFs-based colorimetric sensors have sparked significant advancements in visual detection of food freshness. This article systematically reviews the latest advancements in visual colorimetric sensors based on MOFs for monitoring food freshness. It provides a comprehensive analysis of their capabilities and application potential in identifying and quantifying indicators of food spoilage. Moreover, this review objectively discusses the challenges currently faced by MOFsbased visual colorimetric sensing assays, including material stability, environmental adaptability, and the scalability of practical applications. It also explores the future development pathways and vast prospects of this technology. Based on existing findings, the review provides a critical perspective for understanding the current application status of visual colorimetric sensors in monitoring food freshness, with the aim of offering insights for its future applications and research and development.