6 - Sustainable packaging from coir fibers

Abstract

Now a day there is a great interest in finding a new material that is sustainable and reliable to be used in packaging. Biodegradable and bioplastics are taking place in this area of research and product developments. The main important point here is the environment and how we all are responsible to keep the environment clean and go green. So, the main idea of this chapter is to discuss sustainable materials that have the potential to be utilized in packaging industries. Biodegradables and biopolymers classification is discussed with its application in food packaging, elaborating the advantageous and disadvantageous in packaging applications. Utilization of natural materials as a composite reinforcement and as a raw material for paper making industry also discussed here. One of the natural fibers that draw the attention of the researchers and industries is the coir fiber due to its availability and its good strength, low water absorption, and durability. These advantages make the coconut husks are a good candidate for many applications, one of these applications are eco-friendly food packaging. It can be concluded here that coir fibers can be used as a reinforcement fiber with biodegradable polymers or plastics to produce biocomposites that also can be used in hard packaging. So, the biodegradable and biopolymers can be considered the future of ecofriendly food packaging which depends on sustainable natural material such as coir fibers.