Bovine lactoferrin and lactoferricin B, well-known for their antimicrobial properties, were individually immobilized on two different coatings functionalized with − COOH groups deposited in the inner part of polyethylene micro tubes by means of a plasma deposition (PE-CVD) process fed with ethylene and acrylic acid vapors. The resulting functionalized tubes were tested for antimicrobial activity against three Pseudomonas strains responsible for casein hydrolysis and cheese pigmentation. The cell counts of these spoilage bacteria, incubated for 30 h under their optimal growth conditions, were found to be significantly reduced after 24 h in micro tubes functionalized with lactoferricin B, whereas a very low antimicrobial activity against the same strains, often undistinguishable from that of control samples, was observed in tubes functionalized with lactoferrin. This is the first work in which a plasma coating functionalized by lactoferricin B was studied to make an active packaging useful to control cheese spoilage by Pseudomonas. Industrial relevance The current study describes a new method to immobilize two food grade proteinaceous natural compounds. The resulting plasma-functionalized lactoferricin B-immobilized coating is a promising tool for the control of spoilage microorganisms and shelf-life extension of cheeses. Abbreviations PE-CVD, plasma enhanced-chemical vapor deposition; BLF, bovine Lactoferrin; LfcinB, Lactoferricin B; HM, Mozzarella cheese High Moisture Mozzarella cheese; pdEthAA, plasma deposited Ethylene/Acrylic Acid; XPS, X-ray Photoelectron Spectroscopy; IEX, ion-exchange chromatography; LOQ, limit of quantification; EDC, 1-Ethyl-3-[3-dimethylaminopropyl]carbodiimide hydrochloride; PBS, phosphate buffered saline; PP, polypropylene; PCB, Plate Count Broth; PCA, Plate Count Agar; II, Inhibition Index; GLM, General Linear Model; ANOVA, Analysis of variance; LSD, Fisher's least significant difference; P, statistical probability; LC/MS, Liquid chromatography–mass spectrometry; HPLC, High-performance liquid chromatography Keywords Antimicrobial peptides; Plasma processing; Active packaging; Food spoilage; HM Mozzarella cheese --- 1. Introduction Antimicrobial peptides (