Chapter13 - Nanotechnology: A new approach to advanced food packaging

Abstract

Food problem is a critical global issue. In one aspect, hunger and malnutrition are the number one health risks worldwide. In another, about 40% of manufactured food becomes waste each year. Meanwhile, unsafe food containing harmful bacteria, viruses, parasites or chemical substances, causes more than 200 diseases – ranging from diarrhea to cancers, and an estimated 600 million – almost 1 in 10 people in the world – fall ill after eating contaminated food and 420,000 die every year. Can novel food packaging help address these issues? Nowadays, the development of advanced food packaging with improved properties, more functions, lightweight, and biodegradability becomes the new trend, in which nanotechnology enables the novel nanostructured materials with outstanding properties. The addition of nanoparticles in traditional packaging materials could reinforce their mechanical and barrier properties, so as to provide food products with better protection against external damage. Moreover, active packaging and intelligent packaging have been fabricated to improve food quality and safety and facilitate the communication with consumers. For example, nanosized antimicrobials, antioxidants, and gas absorbents have been incorporated in food packaging materials to extend shelf life, while real time quality information of food products for consumption purposes could be monitored by nanoindicators. Various inorganic and organic compounds have been employed to fabricate advanced food packaging materials, although the safety issue of nanotechnology is a potential concern. In this chapter, we focus on the recent applications of nanotechnology in food packaging reported in the last 5 years, mainly in three areas: (1) packaging materials with improved performance, (2) active packaging, and (3) intelligent packaging. Additionally, we discuss our understanding of the safety issue and future scope of nanotechnology in food packaging.