Overview of Food Antimicrobial Packaging

Abstract

Acutely due to awareness that food products are highly vulnerable to microbial contamination, the food industry constantly tries to uncover new methods for the preservation of their products in order to guarantee their goods and processes continue to offer the highest quality and uphold safety standards throughout the production, storage, and distribution chain. Antimicrobial food packaging can play an important role in food shelf-life extension through the inhibition of microorganism growth present on the surface of food products. Antimicrobial packaging materials containing active substances incorporated into a polymer matrix or as surface coatings have begun to receive more attention for their use as antimicrobial control agents in food packaging systems. The most commonly used packaging materials are paper and plastics. However, from the ecological point of view, biopolymer-based materials have recently garnered more attention in the development of antimicrobial packaging as an alternative, due to their nontoxic biodegradability. In addition, the ongoing global spread of the pandemic caused by the SARS-CoV-2 has led to a preference for fresh food packaged in single-use food coverings. In order to address customer concerns and safeguard their health, the packaging industry could implement additional health safety measures, such as active packaging with antiviral properties.