Current topics in active and intelligent food packaging for preservation of fresh foods

Abstract

The purpose of this review is to provide an overview of current packaging systems, e.g. active packaging and intelligent packaging, for various foods. Active packaging, such as modified atmosphere packaging (MAP), extends the shelf life of fresh produce, provides a high-quality product, reduces economic losses, including those caused by delay of ripening, and improves appearance. However, in active packaging, several variables must be considered, such as temperature control and different gas formulations with different product types and microorganisms. Active packaging refers to the incorporation of additive agents into packaging materials with the purpose of maintaining or extending food product quality and shelf life. Intelligent packaging is emerging as a potential advantage in food processing and is an especially useful tool for tracking product information and monitoring product conditions. Moreover, intelligent packaging facilitates data access and information exchange by altering conditions inside or outside the packaging and product. In spite of these advantages, few of these packaging systems are commercialized because of high cost, strict safety and hygiene regulations or limited consumer acceptance. Therefore more research is needed to develop cheaper, more easily applicable and effective packaging systems for various foods.

Innovations in the food packaging market: active packaging

“…It is in practice that bifunctional sachets are used for this purpose (labels and mats), which contain a CO 2 emitter and an oxygen scavenger, which absorb oxygen and produce the same volume of carbon dioxide. Iron carbonate Source: study based on: [10,11,14,[27][28][29][30][31][32][33][34][35][36][37][38][39][40][41] [8].…”

“…According to forecasts of experts, the emerging generations of active packaging are the future of food packaging [7][8][9][10][11][12][13][14][15]. It is estimated that the share of the so-called advanced packaging represents approximately 5% of the total value of the packaging market, of which 35% belongs to active systems.…”

Innovations in the food packaging market - intelligent packaging - a review

“…A separate type of indicators used in packaging consists of RFID labels (radio frequency identification) (Kitsos & Zhang 2008;Kuswandi et al 2011;Cichoń & Lesiów 2013;Nowacka & Fijałkowska 2014;Vanderroost et al 2014;Lee et al 2015;Cierpiszewski 2016). It is a modern system of product identification, often called the "radio barcode".…”

“…According to forecasts of experts, the emerging generations of intelligent packaging are the future of food packaging (Pereira et al 2012;Farmer 2013;Realini & Marcos 2014;Vanderroost et al 2014;Lee et al 2015;Cierpiszewski 2016;Ghaani et al 2016). It is estimated that the share of the so-called advanced packaging represents approximately 5% of the total value of the packaging market, of which 11% belongs to smart systems.…”

Intelligent and Smart Packaging

“…According to what above reported, interest in the use of active and intelligent packaging systems for agricultural fresh products has increased in recent years. Active packaging refers to the incorporation of additives into packaging systems, with the aim of maintaining or extending fresh vegetable or livestock products quality and shelf life, while intelligent packaging systems are those that monitor the condition of packaged foods to give information regarding the quality of the packaged food during transport and storage [4].…”