Innovative Particulate Systems Based on Biodegradable Polymers for Food Packaging Applications

Abstract

Controlled release packaging (CRP) is an emerging technology that has opened enormous opportunities to food industry for efficient management of food waste by prolonging the food shelf-life without compromising the food taste and flavor. It also minimizes the side effects that occurred due to the usage of excess food preservatives. Microencapsulated packaging actives such as antibacterial, antioxidant, etc., in microparticles with various architectures can potentially be used as active delivery vehicles with controlled-release profiles for continuous supply of actives to the food surface, thus enhancing the food shelf-life. In this chapter, synthesis, formation mechanism, characterization and application of various kinds of innovative microparticles containing single or dual actives have been discussed. These particles are mostly prepared by one step emulsion solvent evaporation technique using biodegradable polymers such as polylactic acid or its copolymers as encapsulating matrix. Designer microparticles with different configurations such as hollow, porous, multi-layered, Janus with hierarchical porosity were demonstrated to be efficient and effective carriers of multiple food packaging actives. Applications of these innovative particles in prolonging the shelf life of food models such as watermelon were also discussed.