Fecha de publicación: 29/08/2014 Fuente: WIPO "abeja" The present invention refers to an antimicrobial biodegradable film based on chitosan, lemon essential oil and bee wax for being used in tomatoes and which is intended to stop the development of Escherichia coli bacterium in tomato fruits in three maturation states, also extending the after-harvest life of the fruit maintaining its quality attributes. The materials present in this composition are considered as GRAS by the FDA. In this research, laboratory and semi commercial studies have been carried out. The development of E. coli DH5a was controlled by the inventive coating. A scarce growth of the pathogen was observed in the coated fruits stored at 10 +/-2°C, red and orange fruits (24 and 17 UFC, respectively), compared to the control group (600 UFC). A scarce growth of the bacterium was observed in the fruits stored at 25 +2°C, green and orange fruits (1 and 0 UFC, respectively), when they were coated with chitosan, bee wax and lemon essential oil, compared to the control group wi th a growth of 600 UFC. The coating made with chitosan, bee wax and lemon essential oil stopped the development of Escherichia coli DH5a in tomato fruits.