Active Packaging In Keeping The Food Fresh – A Review

Abstract

The demand for safe and high quality foods, as well as changes in consumer preferences have led to the development of innovative and novel approaches in food packaging technology. One such development is the smart or intelligent food packaging technology.Packaging is an essential component of the food system, assuring the safe handling and delivery of fresh and processed food products from the point of production to the end user. Technological developments in packaging offer new prospects to reduce losses, maintain quality, add value and extend shelf-life of agricultural produce and consequently secure the food system. The objective of this review is to highlight the contributions of packaging in securing the food system by maintaining quality and reducing food losses. It also discusses some of the emerging packaging technologies that have revolutionized the way we handle and package food to meet the increasing consumer demands for consistent supply of high quality, safe and nutritious products.Key Words:Packaging,Shelf-life,Food products,Waste. INTRODUCTION.Packaging can be defined as a method to protect the food with the aim of minimizing the environmental impact on it.In the current market scenario, packaging provides the most important first point of contact by which a company presents its products to consumers.The Packaging Institute International (PII) defines packaging as the enclosure of products, items or packages in a wrapped pouch, bag, box, cup, tray, can, tube, bottle or other container form to perform one or more of the following functions:containment, protection, preservation, communication, utility and performance. If the device or container performs one or more of these functions, it is considered a package.Smart,active, intelligent and green are terms used to describe innovative packaging technologies developed to prolong the shelf life, enhance the quality and safety of food and protect the environment [1].Conventional passive packaging systems protect the food products only from external environmental hazards.Smart packaging systems are used to modify and monitor the internal and external food environment and provide multiple barriers to protect food [2]. Maintaining food quality,improving safety and reducing post-harvest wastes are key objectives of a smart packaging food system. High incidence of post-harvest wastes pose a major problem in the food industry and world at large [3]. An estimated 1.3 billion tonnes of food is wasted annually in production, distribution, and homes.Reports from developed countries such as Britain, Sweden and USA have indicated that almost one third of purchased food is wasted at food service institutions and households [4].In the early days of agriculture, leaves and animal skin were used as packaging materials to carry food over short distances and to secure them for later use [5].In modern food systems, the principle functions of packaging have widened to include containment, protection, communication and convenience [6]. Paine and Paine (1992) noted...