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BACKGROUND The technological advances in agriculture, driven by the increased demand for food attributed to population growth, have led to the search for technologies that allow greater control over the variables that interfere in crop yield. Several techniques stand out for optimizing yield capacity, including cultivation in a protected environment, mulching and low tunneling. To expand the use of these techniques, synthetic petroleum‐based polymers are employed due to their low cost, easy processing, and lightness. However, they take a long time to degrade, and, since they are discarded at the end of each cycle of cultivation, end up accumulating in the environment causing irreversible damage. RESULTS The use of biodegradable films, made of starch and/or a protein source such as gelatin, has been studied as a promising alternative. Both stand out because of their film‐forming ability, and because they come from abundant sources and are biodegradable. CONCLUSION This study aimed to review the current findings on starch and gelatin films that can be used as alternatives to conventional plastics in agricultural crops. © 2019 Society of Chemical Industry

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The manufacture of leather covers a wide productive chain and beyond contributes to the economic flow. The various stages of leather processing result in high volumes of solid waste. In Brazil, a daily generation of 375 tons of solid waste is estimated, and landfills are still the most used route to its destination. In this review, emphasis will be given to researches that have sought alternatives for the use of solid waste from the tannery industry. Among the main applications of solid tannery wastes, the following stand out production of adsorbent materials, biodiesel, biogas, biopolymers, applications in agriculture and other applications involving extraction/recovery of compounds of industrial/commercial interest, isolation of microorganisms and production of enzymes and applications in the animal diet. In each alternative of waste application, the technologies used, the opportunities, and the challenges faced are mentioned. We hope that this review can provide valuable information to promote the broad understanding of the possibilities that tannery solid wastes has for the development of biodegradable and agricultural products, wastewater treatment, extraction of compounds of industrial and commercial interest, among others.

The overuse of polymer materials from fossil sources has generated a large volume of waste that causes environmental impacts due to the degradation time. The technological advance has stimulated the search for alternatives that can contribute to sustainability. In this context, the use of biodegradable polymers, that use raw materials from renewable sources stand out because they have that ability to form films and come from abundant sources. Also, in the expectation of optimizing the environmental benefits in this process, it is possible to value the agroindustrial residues, using them as raw material in the synthesis of the polymer, the physical, chemical and mechanical properties of these polymers are important to evaluate the possible applications. The proposal of this chapter is to present current research on renewable sources, including agricultural and industrial residues, to obtain biodegradable polymers, highlighting their properties and possibilities of application.

The food industry is always looking for new strategies to extend the shelf life of food. In recent years, the focus has been on edible films and coatings. These play an essential role in the quality, safety, transport, storage, and display of a wide variety of fresh and processed foods and contribute to environmental sustainability. In this sense, this study aimed to carry out a bibliometric analysis and literature review on the production of whey-based films for application in food packaging. Whey-based films have different characteristics when compared to other biopolymers, such as antimicrobial and immunomodulatory capacity. A wide variety of compounds were found that can be incorporated into whey films, aiming to overcome their limitations related to high solubility and low mechanical properties. These compounds range from plasticizing agents, secondary biomacromolecules added to balance the polymer matrix (gelatin, starch, chitosan), and bioactive agents (essential oils, pigments extracted from plants, and other antimicrobial agents). The most cited foods as application matrix were meat (fish, chicken, ham, and beef), in addition to different types of cheese. Edible and biodegradable films have the potential to replace synthetic polymers, combining social, environmental, and economic aspects. The biggest challenge on a large scale is the stability of physical, chemical, and biological properties during application.