In modern supply chains fruits are often wasted in the path between the harvest and the final user consumption because of lack of control over the ripening process. The harvest of unripen fruits, and the initiation of the ripening process just before its delivery to the final consumer, was found to reduce the waste of fruits.A common method to trigger ripening is to keep fruits inside special chambers and initiate the ripening process through administration of ethylene, which is a common ripening agent. The fruit is gassed with ethylene in chambers, with inadequate control of its concentration. Furthermore, the concentration at which ethylene starts its biological activity is very low, from few units to hundreds of ppm, and is difficult to be maintained using cylinders; an excess of ethylene is commonly administered resulting in accelerated rates of ripening, leading to overripe fruits. The aim of this study is the development of a new technology for a more precise regulation of ethylene concentration in the atmosphere where fruits are preserved. To this purpose a polymeric film, containing an inclusion complex of a-cyclodextrin with ethylene, was used. This complex was prepared by molecular encapsulation which allowsthe entrapment of ethylene into the cavity of a-cyclodextrin. After encapsulation, ethylene can gradually be released from the inclusion complexes and its release rate can be regulated acting on temperature and humidity. After encapsulation, inclusion complexes were dispersed into thin polymeric films produced by UV-curing, a solvent-free method involving low operating temperature so as to prevent a premature release of ethylene from the inclusion complexes. The polymeric films were characterized with respect to thermal behavior, crystalline structure and kinetics of ethylene release, showing that can effectively control the release of ethylene in a confined volume.