Edible Films and Coatings for Fruits and Vegetables

Abstract

Any type of material used for enrobing (i.e., wrapping or coating) various food to extend shelf life of the product that may be eaten together with food, with or without its further removal is considered an edible film or coating. The films and coatings are produced exclusively from renewable and edible ingredients and therefore are anticipated to degrade more readily than polymeric materials. Since last decade, researches on edible films and coatings of foods especially fruits and vegetables are driven due to the high demand of consumers for longer shelf–life and better quality of fresh foods as well as of environmentally and health friendly packaging. The main advantage of edible films as well as coatings over traditional synthetics is that they can be consumed with the products and are environmentally safe. Edible coatings can enhance the organoleptic properties of packaged foods provided they contain various components (flavorings, colorings, sweeteners). The use of edible films and coatings incorporated with food grade additives has been constantly increasing in the food industry. The functionality and performance of edible films mainly depend on their barrier, mechanical and optical properties, which in turn depend on film composition and manufacturing process. Presently various researches are extensively carrying out throughout the globe to address the need of enhancing the properties of edible coating and film by introducing various functional and active agents including nanomaterials to develop an alternative to the synthetic polymers and hazardous chemicals forwarding one step to convert entire society into green zone.