Abstract: It is provided an antimicrobial combination for the preservation of foodstuff, comprising citral, hexanal, and linalool as the only active ingredients having antimicrobial activity, and optionally other components and/or excipients devoid of any antimicrobial activity, an active packaging material for the preservation of foodstuff comprising the mentioned antimicrobial combination, as well as an active package comprising the active packaging material. The packaging material is useful for the preservation of foodstuff, particularly of minimally processed fruits or vegetables. Also, it is provided a process for producing the packaging material.