Cinnamon oil prevents bread mold

ScienceDaily is reporting that when cinnamon is incorporated into the packaging of bread, it inhibits the growth of bread mold:

The scientists prepared active packaging composed of paraffin wax paper with different concentrations of cinnamon essential oil, which has high antimicrobial activity. They then inoculated fresh white bread with a common mold species and stored the bread in either plain wax paper or cinnamon-based wax paper for several days. After just three days, the packaging containing just 6 percent cinnamon oil inhibited 96 percent of mold growth, whereas the plain wax paper did not prevent mold growth, the researchers say. The cinnamon-based wrapper continued to inhibit mold for up to 10 days.

The spice trade was perhaps the single most significant stimulus for the exploration of the world in the Middle Ages. I had always understood that spices "covered up" the smell or taste of spoiled food, especially meat. It's interesting to see contemporary studies which indicate that they may have played a more fundamental role in food preservation.