Protein-Based Films and Coatings for Food Industry Applications.

Vlad Mihalca,Carmen Ioana Mureșan,Oana Lelia Pop,Andreea Diana Kerezsi,Francisc Vasile Dulf,Ramona Suharoschi,Jürgen Schmucker,Anca Fărcaș,Sonia Ancuța Socaci,Carmen Gruber-Traub,Achim Weber,Dan Cristian Vodnar

doi:10.3390/polym13050769

Abstract

Food packaging is an area of interest not just for food producers or food marketing, but also for consumers who are more and more aware about the fact that food packaging has a great impact on food product quality and on the environment. The most used materials for the packaging of food are plastic, glass, metal, and paper. Still, over time edible films have become widely used for a variety of different products and different food categories such as meat products, vegetables, or dairy products. For example, proteins are excellent materials used for obtaining edible or non-edible coatings and films. The scope of this review is to overview the literature on protein utilization in food packages and edible packages, their functionalization, antioxidant, antimicrobial and antifungal activities, and economic perspectives. Different vegetable (corn, soy, mung bean, pea, grass pea, wild and Pasankalla quinoa, bitter vetch) and animal (whey, casein, keratin, collagen, gelatin, surimi, egg white) protein sources are discussed. Mechanical properties, thickness, moisture content, water vapor permeability, sensorial properties, and suitability for the environment also have a significant impact on protein-based packages utilization.

Highlights

Since ancient times, humans have tried to find optimal solutions for packing their food products as and productively as possible
Food packaging is an area of interest not just for food producers or food marketing, and for consumers who are more and more aware about the fact that food packaging has a great impact on food product quality and on the environment
The scope of this review is to overview the literature on protein utilization in food packages and edible packages, their functionalization, antioxidant, antimicrobial and antifungal activities, and economic perspectives

Summary

Introduction

Humans have tried to find optimal solutions for packing their food products as and productively as possible. The population started to develop alternatives when discussing packaging. In this regard, the research for new, unconventional materials that can be used for packaging food in a more sustainable and eco-friendly way has seen a constant increase in the last few decades. Packaging has many duties such as: to preserve substances against contamination and perishability, to move and keep goods, and to give a constant measure of the contents. A package has three important tasks: to protect the contents, to give good marketing to a product, and to deliver useful information to the customer. A fourth purpose is related to advertisement because easy to use packaging increases market opportunities

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