Bio-based Food Packaging Materials Research Articles

Stepwise reinforcement strategy for guar gum/sodium alginate based films: Introduction of carboxylated cellulose nanofibers by different methods and further calcium ion crosslinking

Insufficient mechanical, barrier and water resistance properties of guar gum (GG) films limit their application in food packaging field. Herein, the properties of GG films were enhanced by a stepwise modification strategy. The mechanical and water vapor barrier properties of GG films were initially reinforced by doping with a different type of polysaccharide (sodium alginate; SA). Next, carboxylated cellulose nanofibers (CCN) were introduced as a reinforcing agent to improve film properties via two methods (blending and layer-by-layer (LBL) assembly method). Finally, the water resistance of composite films was further enhanced by calcium ion cross-linking treatment. GG/SA composite films exhibited better mechanical strength and water vapor barrier capacity compared to pristine GG film. In addition, the introduction of CCN, either by blending or LBL method, improved the light barrier, water vapor barrier and tensile strength. The calcium ion cross-linking treatment further enhanced the water vapor barrier, thermal stability, tensile strength and water resistance capacity. The potential applications of GG/SA/CCN films in real food packaging were also explored. In short, this study presents a simple and feasible performance enhancement strategy for GG and other underperforming polysaccharide matrix films, with potential applications in the development of high-performance bio-based food packaging materials.

Polyvinyl alcohol/kappa-carrageenan-based package film with simultaneous incorporation of ferric ion and polyphenols from Capsicum annuum leaves for fruit shelf-life extension

Bio-based food packaging materials have elicited growing interests due to their great degradability, high safety and active biofunctions. In this work, by simultaneously introducing the polyphenolic extracts from Capsicum annuum leaves and ferric ion (Fe3+) into the Polyvinyl alcohol/kappa-carrageenan (PVA/κ-carrageenan)-based film-forming matrix, an active package film was developed, with the purpose to improve the food shelf life. The experimental results indicated that the existence of Fe3+ can not only improve the mechanical properties owing to the multiple dynamic coordinated interactions, but also endow the composite films with excellent fire-retardancy. Moreover, the composite films could display excellent UV resistant performance, water vapor/oxygen gas barrier properties and antioxidant activities with the corporation of polyphenols. In particular, the highest DPPH and ABTS radical scavenging capacities for composite film (PC-PLP7 sample) were evaluated to be 82.5 % and 91.1 %, respectively. Higher polyphenol concentration is favorable to the bio-functions of the materials. Benefitting from these features, this novel kind of films with a dense and steady micro-structure could be further applicated in fruit preservations, where the ripening bananas were ensured with the high storage quality. This integration as a prospective food packaging material provides an economic and eco-friendly approach to excavate the high added-values of biomass.

Bio-based food packaging materials: A sustainable and Holistic approach for cleaner environment- a review

The contribution of plastic packaging in food is substantial, but issues associated with its biodegradability and recycling initiates major concerns for environment and human health thus necessitating substitution of conventional synthetic plastics with bio-based packaging materials. Studies have demonstrated economic competition of bio-based materials with synthetic plastics because of their biodegradability, wide availability, excellent barrier and mechanical properties. These materials can be commercialized on a large scale but still somehow are under-investigated in many areas. Moreover, some of the influencing factors including confusion between bio-based and biodegradability pose a significant challenge on evolution of bio-based packaging. Therefore, the review focuses on bio-based packaging materials derived from various renewable resources like biomass, microorganisms and microalgae involving their possible food packaging applications along with required development in multiple regions for proper utilization of offered advantages in the food packaging market.

Biobased Food Packaging Materials: Sustainable Alternative to Conventional Petrochemical Packaging Materials: A Review

Plastics as a packaging material in the food industry is highly preferable, but due to environmental concerns and government legislation, there is a need to develop biobased biodegradable packaging materials. This review includes the sources of biopolymers, methods of productions, future and applications of biobased packaging materials in food packaging. As bioplastic materials have some limitations in terms of mechanical and barrier properties in comparison with synthetic plastics. These limitations can be overcome by using suitable fillers, nanocomposites and certain additives in bioplastics production. The development of bioplastic has a high potential to replace non-biodegradable plastic packaging. Biopolymer with synthetic polymers blends is also an emerging area of research. Bench casting and continuous casting are the popular methods for bioplastic production in the scientific community. According to the global production capacities of the bioplastics report, the present bioplastics production is only 2% of the production volume of the synthetic polymers, it will increase 4% until 2023.

Evaluation of Practical Applicability and Synergistic Effects of Bio-Based Food Packaging Materials Combined with Plant-Based Stabilisers

Different analyses and feasibility studies have been conducted on the plant extracts of thyme (Thymus vulgaris), European horse chestnut (Aesculus hippocastanum), Nordmann fir (Abies nordmanniana), and snowdrop (Galanthus elwesii) to evaluate bio-based alternatives to common petrol-based stabilisers. For this purpose, in this study, plant extracts were incorporated into poly-lactic acid films (PLA) at different concentrations. The films’ UV absorbance and migration into packed food was analysed via photometric assays (ABTS radical cation scavenging capacity assay, β-carotene assay) and GC–MS analysis. Furthermore, the synergistic antioxidant effects of various combinations of extracts and isolated active compounds were determined. This way, antioxidant effects can be increased, allowing for a highly effective use of resources. All extracts were successfully incorporated into PLA films and showed notable photoabsorbing effects, while no migration risk was observed. Depending on extract combinations, high synergistic effects of up to 726% can be utilised to improve the effectiveness of bio-based extracts. This applies particularly to tomato paste and Aesculus hippocastanum extracts, which overall show high synergistic and antioxidant effects in combination with each other and with isolated active compounds. The study shows that it is possible to create safe bio-based antioxidant films which show even improved properties when using highlighted target combinations.

Effect of Green Plasticizer on the Performance of Microcrystalline Cellulose/Polylactic Acid Biocomposites

In this study, we present the development of eco-friendly biocomposites composed of polylactic acid (PLA) and microcrystalline cellulose (MCC), using melt extrusion and compression molding processes. In all the studied samples, the PLA/MCC ratio was always 1:1, whereas the plasticizer triethyl citrate (TEC) was responsible for the improved dispersion of the MCC in PLA. Tensile tests proved that the developed biocomposites containing TEC show improved ductility and crystallinity, as confirmed by the X-ray diffraction (XRD) study. Furthermore, the water vapor and oxygen permeability of the biocomposites were found to decrease as the TEC content increases in the formulation. Nonetheless, migration analyses to a dry food simulant prove that the migration of TEC is slightly above the acceptable limits when biocomposites with 15 wt % TEC were used. Taking this into account, in combination with the ranking of all the developed biocomposites according to their performance through the technique for order of preference by similarity to ideal solution (TOPSIS) analysis, we concluded that the PLA/MCC samples with 10 wt % TEC can be considered the most suitable biocomposites for eco-friendly food packaging applications. These findings place the developed PLA/MCC biocomposites among the strong candidates for biobased food packaging materials able to be produced at a large scale following industrially applicable methods since they are cost-effective and have improved properties compared to the pure biopolymer.

Oleogel Films Through the Pickering Effect of Bacterial Cellulose Nanofibrils Featuring Interfacial Network Stabilization

As bio-based food packaging materials promise a more sustainable future, this work fabricated edible oleofilms by casting beeswax-in-water Pickering emulsions, which were formed by the physical hybrid particles of bacterial cellulose nanofibrils (BCNFs) and carboxymethyl chitosan (CCS) (BC/CCS). The emulsion droplet size was varied from 4 to 9 μm, and the emulsion index (EI) was all up to 100%. The obtained emulsions exhibited excellent long-term stability, and there was no change in the EI (100%) after the storage of the emulsion for 3 months. Moreover, the environmental temperature had almost no impact on the droplet size and EI of the emulsion. The mechanical properties of the oleofilms were significantly improved by enhancing the content of BC/CCS. There was also a visual reduction in the water vapor permeability (WVP) value, which was lower than 1.1 × 10-7 g·m-1·h-1·Pa-1. Furthermore, the obtained oleofilms exhibited a notable improvement in surface hydrophobicity, and surprisingly, it could be easily redispersed into water to recover back to the emulsion state without additional high energy mixing. This suggested that this edible oleofilm was prepared by a fully green method by casting Pickering emulsions stabilized by BC/CCS and could extend its application for the development of food-grade coating materials.

Evaluation of the Properties of Cellulose Ester Films that Incorporate Essential Oils

Films made from cellulose esters are often used as bio-based food packaging materials. In this work, we studied the incorporation of nine essential oils into cellulose acetate, cellulose acetate propionate, and cellulose acetate butyrate. The essential oils were derived from lime, nutmeg, eugenol, pimenta berry, rosemary, petitgrain, coffee, anise, and trans-cinnamaldehyde. In almost all cases, the addition of essential oils to cellulose ester reduced tensile strength and Young’s modulus but increased elongation at break. Thus, an essential oil acted like a plasticizer that enhanced the flexibility of the polymer. Essential oils containing limonene and pinenes (e.g., from lime and nutmeg) gave the strongest plasticizing action, whereas essentials oils containing fatty acids (e.g., from coffee) were the weakest plasticizers. The water barrier property was improved the most when essential oils were added to cellulose acetate; however, different cellulose ester/essential oil combinations showed different effects. Whereas most of the essential oils decreased the transparency of the films, eugenol, pimento berry, and anise were notable exceptions. Thus, depending on a specific application, a particular polymer/EO combination can be used to give the optimal performance.

The film-forming properties of chitosan with tannic acid addition

The design and obtainment of bio-based materials is in the interest of many research groups. Chitosan and tannic acid are natural and biodegradable polymers. In the present study, they are proposed as raw materials for production of packaging materials. The present study involves the surface free energy and maximum tensile strength measurement.The results showed the improvement of mechanical parameters after the addition of tannic acid to the chitosan. Also, the surface free energy increases with the increasing amount of tannic acid. The proposed films have the appropriate parameters for the potential application as bio-based food packaging materials. The surface free energy for LLDPE and PET was measured by Meiron [1] are similar to the chitosan/tannic acid films however, proposed materials are safe for the environment.

Development of expert system for biobased polymer material selection: food packaging application

Biobased food packaging materials are gaining more attention owing to their intrinsic biodegradable nature and renewability. Selection of suitable biobased polymers for food packaging applications could be a tedious task with potential mistakes in choosing the best materials. In this paper, an expert system was developed using Exsys Corvid software to select suitable biobased polymer materials for packaging fruits, dry food and dairy products. If - Then rule based system was utilized to accomplish the material selection process whereas a score system was formulated to facilitate the ranking of selected materials. The expert system selected materials that satisfied all constraints and selection results were presented in suitability sequence depending on their scores. The expert system selected polylactic acid (PLA) as the most suitable material.

Elaboration of a new antibacterial bio-nano-material for food-packaging by synergistic action of cyclodextrin and microfibrillated cellulose

Abstract A new sustained release paper-based packaging with antibacterial property was developed using the synergistic action between beta-cyclodextrin (βCD) and microfibrillated cellulose (MFC). Carvacrol, an antibacterial molecule, was included in βCD, previously grafted onto paper substrates, by impregnation. The MFC suspension was coated on the ensued substrate surface using a bar-coating process. Properties such as the Young modulus, zero-span breaking length or air permeability were characterized. Two release studies were conducted in deionized water and agar. Antibacterial tests were carried out in parallel. The mechanical properties were drastically damaged by the grafting process, whereas the barrier properties were maintained or even improved due to the MFC coating. The βCD-grafted samples allowed the gradual release of carvacrol 21 h later and with a release kinetic 24% slower in water. In agar, the association of βCD and MFC was emphasized. The samples were antibacterial for 14 h with βCD, and the addition of MFC still enhanced this period of time. A synergy between βCD and MFC was observed, paving the way for future promising development of sustained release packaging. Industrial relevance Packaging is a substantial part of our everyday life and the use of packaging materials has shown a continuous increase over time. Today, the packaging industry relies strongly on the use of petroleum-derived plastic materials, whereas it is raising both environmental and economic concerns. Besides, even in industrialized countries, food-poisoning cases still persist. As a result, the society's requirements as for the development of food-packaging materials are evolving. The use of biodegradable, bio-based food-packaging materials able to preserve and ensure the shelf-life of food is required. In response to these requirements this study proposes a new bio-based food-packaging material able to preserve better and prolong the shelf-life of food by the sustained release of antibacterial molecules.

Polysaccharides as Biopolymers for Food Shelf-Life Extention: Recent Patents

Biopolymers have properties that make them suitable for use in increasing food shelf-life. At present, conventional polymers could be substituted with biobased food packaging materials in several areas such as meat products, fruits and vegetables, dairy products, frozen food, dry food, snacks, ready to eat food and drinks. In spite of the enormous amount of published scientific articles and reviews on polysaccharide employment in food shelf-life extension, there is a comparatively limited number of patents issued from industry. Several polysaccharides alone or in combination with other substances are proposed in the patents aimed to extend the food shelf-life of fresh food, reducing modifications in color, flavor and taste. In this review, we will focus on polysaccharides extracted from biomass and their applications in the food industry, in particular on food shelf-life extension. The patents issued in the last twenty years for polysaccharides and their applications in food shelf-life extension will be reviewed.