SRP BY SHEHZAR ALI 10R

Title: What best preserves Bread

Aim: To investigate what best preserves a bread slice in various packaging's
Hypothesis: From my thorough research of bread, I think the bread will be best preserved over
the span of 4-8 weeks (about 2 months) in cling wrap due to a more compact and more tight air
space surrounding the bread which will help the bread not get any Mould on it.
Introduction: You might be wondering what the point of this experiment is? Well, from my
extensive research this experiment is extremely useful because when it comes to bread and
several types of bread out there, in the end it always gets Mould on it no matter what you do.
As Mould grows on bread and a person then consumes it, it causes the stomach to be upset and
causes you to get sick. During these 4-8 weeks (about 2 months) I will be testing which type of
areas bread can be best preserved in, so out of the experiment we can finally conclude on how
to preserve bread to use it for an extended period. When it comes to several types of bread
there is an entire range of breads out there such as white bread, wholegrain bread, rye bread,
wheat bread etc. Which each single one of them each have different preservatives which help
prevent the bread to Mould and to increase shelf life while some breads tend to Mould quicker
due to the preservatives which the bread contains.
Equipment:
- Wonder white bread - Water
- Plastic Ziploc Bags
- Cling Wrap
- Plastic or Glass Jars
Risk Assessment:

Substance of Risk Nature of Risk Safety Precaution

Mould You can potentially get Make sure you wear gloves
infected by the Mould which before encountering the
then could lead to a disease Mould to prevent you getting
infected
Ethics: I think my experiment is very ethical and useful due to letting us figure out which
packaging best preserves bread slices so in the future we would know how to let the bread last
longer. It doesn’t harm the environment or any people due to this helping the community find a
better way to preserve bread.
Variables:

Dependent Variable -Growth of Mould on the bread slices

Independent Variable -Time the bread is left in the packaging for
-Type of packaging
Controlled Variable -Brand of bread

Method:
1) Grabbed 3 Slices of bread and added 5-10ML of water to each slice of bread
2) Placed the 1st bread slice in the plastic Ziploc bag
3) Placed the 2nd bread slice in cling wrap wrapped tightly
4) Placed the 3rd bread slice in the glass jar and shut the jar tightly
5) For the control a 4th slice of bread was left there without adding any water on it without
putting anything, next to the slices of bread that have already been placed in jars, cling
wrap, and Ziploc Bags
6) Left all the Ziploc Bags, Cling Wraps, and Jars in the same location so they got the same
temperature and so it was a reliable and fair experiment
7) Watch and record the observations as well as take pictures. While observing make sure
the bread slices have not been affected by any external factors, for example someone
opening the jar and putting something in there or opening the cling wrap and throwing
it away etc.
8) At the end of the experiment record your results
9) Repeat Steps 1-4 a total of 2-3 times including the first time to give fair and consistent
results
Results: 1st Experiment
As you can see, I started the first experiment on Monday (8/8/22) so as you can see from the
photos below these are the first photos taken when I had started my experiment all in the
containers, plastic bags and in cling wrap. These photos are the start of my experiment after
they were put into their packaging.

After 2 days I started noticing Mould spots on the bread and decided to measure how much
Mould had grown on the bread slices and took some photos along with the measurements. This
is how the bread looked with the Mould on it after only 2 days.
The recorded measurements for the bread in the container were 2.5cm in length and 3cm in
width. The measurements for the bread slice in cling wrap were 1.5cm in length and 2cm in
width. The measurements for the bread slice in the plastic bag was 1.5cm in length and 2cm in
width. This is how the bread slices looked after 2 weeks of being in the packaging from Monday
(8/8/22) to (22/8/22).

After the 2 weeks 3 out of the 4 bread slices had Mould on them. The first day of the Mould
forming for the bread slice in the cling wrap for only 2 days came out to be 1.5cm in length and
2cm in width. After the 2 weeks the bread slice in the cling wrap had grown a lot of Mould and
the final measurements was 3cm in length and 6cm in width. That means the bread slice in the
cling wrap had an increase of 1.5cm in length and 4cm in width. The First Day of the bread
forming Mould in the container was 2.5cm in length and 3cm in width. After the 2 weeks the
bread slice in the container was recorded and the measurements for the bread slice in the
container after 2 weeks was 5.5cm in length and 9cm in width. That’s an Increase of 3cm in
length and 6cm in width from the first day till the end of the experiment. The First day of Mould
forming on the bread slice in the plastic Ziploc bag was recorded and the measurements was
1.5cm in length and 2 cm in width. After the 2 weeks the breads Mould in the Ziploc Bag was
recorded and came out to be 7.5cm in length and 3.5cm in width. That’s an increase of 6cm in
length and 1.5cm in width from the first day till the end of the experiment.
First Experiment:

Packaging Cling Wrap Container Ziploc Bag No Packaging

First Day of L=1.5cm L=2.5cm L=1.5cm -
Mould forming W=2cm W=3cm W=2cm
Last Day of L=3cm L=5.5cm L=7.5cm -
Mould Forming W=6cm W=9cm W=3.5cm
Increase L=1.5cm L=3cm L=6cm -
W=4cm W=6cm W=1.5cm
2nd Experiment:
I started the 2nd experiment on (Monday) 22/8/22 until (Monday) 5/9/22 so these are the
photos of what the bread slices looked like when I first put the bread in their packaging and
when I started the second experiment

After 3 Days I found out the bread slices started to Mould so I decided to measure the amount
of Mould each of the bread slices had as well as took photos. So, this is what the bread slices
with Mould looked like after 3 days.

Throughout the brutal long 2 weeks the Mould on the bread started to grow and grow. Once
the 2 weeks came to an end, I decided to take photos and take the results of how much the
bread Molded. This is how the bread had looked after 2 brutal long weeks.
After the 2 weeks 3 out of the 4 bread slices had Mould on them. The first day of the Mould
forming for the bread slice in the cling wrap for only 3 days came out to be 3cm in length and
3cm in width. After the 2 weeks the bread slice in the cling wrap had grown a lot of Mould and
the final measurements was 5cm in length and 4cm in width. That means the bread slice in the
cling wrap had an increase of 2cm in length and 1cm in width. The First Day of the bread
forming Mould in the container was 6.5cm in length and 3cm in width. After the 2 weeks the
bread slice in the container was recorded and the measurements for the bread slice in the
container after 2 weeks was 9cm in length and 10cm in width. That’s an Increase of 2.5cm in
length and 7cm in width from the first day till the end of the experiment. The First day of Mould
forming on the bread slice in the plastic Ziploc bag was recorded and the measurements was
2.5cm in length and 4.5cm in width. After the 2 weeks the breads Mould in the Ziploc Bag was
recorded and came out to be 7.5cm in length and 8cm in width. That’s an increase of 5cm in
length and 3.5cm in width from the first day till the end of the experiment.
Packaging Cling Wrap Plastic Ziploc Bag Container No Packaging
First Day of Mould L=3cm L=2.5cm L=6.5cm -
Forming W=3cm W=4.5cm W=3cm
Last day of Mould L=5cm L=7.5cm L=9cm -
Forming (5/9/22) W=4cm W=8cm W=10cm
Increase L=2cm L=5cm L=2.5cm -
W=1cm W=3.5cm W=7cm
Discussion of Results:
Throughout the brutal 4 weeks doing two experiments with each taking over 2 weeks to do it
wasn’t easy. When I had started both experiments it took only 2-3 days for all three breads to
mould but then I had to wait 2 weeks for more mould to grow on each of the three slices of
bread. Over the 2 weeks I had no hope of this experiment going well until I had actually waited
a bit longer and fund out that mould was actually starting to grow on the bread slices which
was surprising. When it came to best preservation of bread of course the bread with no
packaging won due to more air space so it was fresh all the time where as the other three bread
slices weren’t so fresh.
Conclusion:
My results show why you should do two experiments so its more fair and more reliable results.
Overall from my two experiments I found out that the cling wrap had best preserved the bread
slice for both experiments and my hypothesis was correct because of more compact and tight
air space compared to in the container and in the plastic Ziploc Bag. At the end of this
experiment I have found out that the best packaging to best preserve a bread slice is ‘Cling
Wrap’

Bibliography:
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Uni.edu, (2014). Reliability and Validity. [online] Available at:
https://chfasoa.uni.edu/reliabilityandvalidity.htm (Accessed on 24/8/22)
Wet and forget, (2013). How Mold Grows. [online] Available at:
https://www.wetandforget.com/blog/2018/06/27/how-mold-grows/#:~:text=Water%3A
%20Molds%20thrive%20in%20damp,use%20to%20grow%20and%20spread. (Accessed on
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Martyn Shuttleworth, Explorable. (2015). Mold Bread Experiment. [online] Available at:
https://explorable.com/mold-bread-experiment (Accessed on 24/8/22)