Bio-Plastics: A Perfect Tool for Eco-Friendly Food Packaging: A Review

Revolutionary changes are always associated with fo od packaging. For last few years, this field is completely domina ted by mineral oil derived polymers such as polyethylene (PE) and polystyrene (PS). These materials have brought so much convenience and attraction to food industry that nobody was bothered about the diminishing availabil ity of these materials as they are coming from non-renewable sources and their safe disposal. But, due to the growing concern over environmental problems associated with these materials, renewed interest in packaging rese arch are underway to develop and promote the use of “bio-plastic.” Bio-p lastic is a term used for packaging materials derived from renewable resources i.e. produced from agricultural sources, biological raw materials such as starch and bio-derived monomers and which are considered safe to be used in food applications. In general, compared to conventional plastics derived from petroleum, bioplastics have more diverse stereochemistry and arch itecture of side chains which enable research scientists a greater number o f opportunities to customize the properties of the final packaging mat erial. This review evaluates the suitability of bio-plastics for food packaging. Additionally, it identifies the challenges involved while using bio- plastics for different food products.

[1]  Valentina Siracusa,et al.  Biodegradable polymers for food packaging: a review , 2008 .

[2]  L. Yang,et al.  Effects of lipids on mechanical and moisture barrier properties of edible gellan film , 2000 .

[3]  S. Kelley,et al.  Starch esters as biodegradable plastics : effects of ester group chain length and degree of substitution on anaerobic biodegradation , 1995 .

[4]  V. K. Arora,et al.  Industry Perspective and Roles , 2008 .

[5]  R. N. Tharanathan,et al.  Biodegradable films and composite coatings: past, present and future , 2003 .

[6]  L. Avérous,et al.  Starch-Based Biodegradable Materials Suitable for Thermoforming Packaging , 2001 .

[7]  M. M. Nir,et al.  UPDATE ON PLASTICS AND THE ENVIRONMENT : PROGRESS AND TRENDS. I, II , 1993 .

[8]  J. Rantanen,et al.  Development and characterization of aqueous amylose-rich maize starch dispersion for film formation. , 2003, European journal of pharmaceutics and biopharmaceutics : official journal of Arbeitsgemeinschaft fur Pharmazeutische Verfahrenstechnik e.V.

[9]  R. Chandra,et al.  Biodegradation of maleated linear low-density polyethylene and starch blends , 1997 .

[10]  J. Teixeira,et al.  Optimization of edible coating composition to retard strawberry fruit senescence , 2007 .

[11]  Karli Verghese,et al.  Sustainable packaging systems development , 2005 .

[12]  T. Ford,et al.  Microbial degradation of polymeric coatings measured by electrochemical impedance spectroscopy , 2004, Biodegradation.

[13]  J. Krochta,et al.  Edible and biodegradable polymer films: challenges and opportunities , 1997 .

[14]  A. Chiralt,et al.  Physical and antimicrobial properties of chitosan–tea tree essential oil composite films , 2010 .

[15]  N. Gontard,et al.  Modified Atmosphere Packaging of Cultivated Mushroom (Agaricus bisporus L.) with Hydrophilic Films , 2002 .

[16]  Walter Leal Filho.  Handbook of sustainability research , 2005 .

[17]  Leo B. Albertov.  Polymer degradation and stability research developments , 2007 .

[18]  Susan Selke,et al.  An overview of polylactides as packaging materials. , 2004, Macromolecular bioscience.

[19]  Michael Sturges.  Environmental legislation for packaging in the next millennium , 2000 .

[20]  Myung S. Jhon,et al.  Viscoelasticity of biodegradable polymer blends of poly(3-hydroxybutyrate) and poly(ethylene oxide) , 2001 .

[21]  J J Kester,et al.  EDIBLE FILMS AND COATINGS: A REVIEW , 1986 .

[22]  C. Wang,et al.  Modified atmosphere packaging of fruits and vegetables. , 1989, Critical reviews in food science and nutrition.

[23]  Antony Griffin.  Trend to more digital applications apparent at 1978 UKSC Conference , 1978 .

[24]  S. Yin,et al.  Packaging-specific influence of chitosan on color stability and lipid oxidation in refrigerated ground beef. , 2010, Meat science.

[25]  F. Shahidi,et al.  Food applications of chitin and chitosans , 1999 .

[26]  L. Bello‐Pérez,et al.  Physicochemical and microstructural characterization of films prepared by thermal and cold gelatinization from non-conventional sources of starches , 2005 .

[27]  L. Visai,et al.  New multifunctional poly(lactide acid) composites: Mechanical, antibacterial, and degradation properties , 2012 .

[28]  M. Hanna,et al.  Application of edible coatings on meats, poultry and seafoods: a review , 1997 .

[29]  T. Ojeda.  Polymers and the Environment , 1997 .

[30]  E. Asp,et al.  Corn-starch-containing polyethylene film used as food packaging , 1994 .

[31]  Aristippos Gennadios,et al.  Property Modification of Edible Wheat, Gluten-Based Films , 1993 .

[32]  M. Alexander.  Effect of chemical structure on biodegradation. , 1994 .

[33]  Yoshito Ikada,et al.  Thermal characterization of polylactides , 1988 .

[34]  E. A. Zottola,et al.  Biofilms in food processing , 1995 .

[35]  Frédéric Debeaufort,et al.  Factors Affecting the Moisture Permeability of Lipid-Based Edible Films: A Review , 2002, Critical reviews in food science and nutrition.

[36]  Hallie Forcinio,et al.  Handbook of package engineering , 1971 .

[37]  P. Nielsen,et al.  Potential of biobased materials for food packaging , 1999 .

[38]  R. Pradhan,et al.  Protective Coatings for Shelf Life Extension of Fru its and Vegetables , 2013 .

[39]  I. Harding,et al.  Biodegradability of a Selected Range of Polymers and Polymer Blends and Standard Methods for Assessment of Biodegradation , 2005 .

[40]  J. Rhim,et al.  Tensile, water vapor barrier and antimicrobial properties of PLA/nanoclay composite films , 2009 .

[41]  Takashi Hirata,et al.  Modified atmosphere packaging of fresh produce with a biodegradable laminate of chitosan-cellulose and polycaprolactone , 1997 .

[42]  A. Pometto,et al.  Food Packaging Potential of Some Novel Degradable Starch-Polyethylene Plastics 1. , 1994, Journal of Food Protection.