Nanoscale manufacturing as an enabling strategy for the design of smart food packaging systems

Abstract

Abstract Nanoscale manufacturing has enabled the development of smart packaging systems for the functional and convenient distribution of food products, overcoming the major bottlenecks to the future fabrication of stable, safe, economically feasible, and environmentally friendly food packaging systems. Traditionally, packaging systems have been used to protect products from physical impacts and were designed mainly for storage and transportation. The more recent packaging systems carry out the many additional functions required to maintain, preserve, and sustain the food product. In this review, we describe two nanoscale manufacturing-based approaches (viz., nanomaterials and nanofabrication) for smart food packaging systems and focus on their performance, including their gas barrier, antibacterial, and protective effects. Looking to the future, we summarize the updated information on the incorporation of nanoscale manufacturing-based systems into the food industry and discuss new perspectives of these systems for the smart food packaging industry.