Development of bioactive edible packaging films and expedition of its preservation and quorum quenching potentials

Abstract

Accumulation of plastic wastes has been the major threat to the environment due to the non-biodegradable nature of synthetic and petroleum-based plastics. The use of synthetic and petroleum-based plastics has reached its pinnacle in packaging industries. The migration of microplastics from the packaging material is one of the major problems, especially in food packaging industries. The recent developments in the production of biopolymers from natural renewable resources may give the long term remedy for the above-mentioned problems to environment and packaging industries. The excess use of synthetic preservatives in food products for its shelf life extension has been a major threat to human health. The development of natural preservatives can be the long term remedy for this major problem in the food industry. The biodegradable nature of the natural biopolymers and effectiveness of natural preservatives has created a demand for further research in the field of natural polymers and development of bio-active packaging systems for food. The present study highlights the development of natural biopolymer from agro wastes, incorporation of natural preservatives and nanoparticles in biopolymer packaging films, and effect of a bio-active packaging system in shelf life extension of highly perishable raw meat. The polysaccharides present in agro-industrial wastes such as tamarind seeds, rice mill residue, okra head, and sugarcane bagasse were extracted and estimated to have 84.68 %, 74.18 %, 81.91 %, and 87.52 % of polysaccharides, respectively. Among the investigated agro-industrial wastes, tamarind seed and rice mill residue were examined to be rich in starch, okra head was found to be rich in mucilage polysaccharide, and sugarcane bagasse was examined to be rich in cellulose. The thermal stability and molecular weight of polysaccharides extracted from different agro-industrial wastes were estimated through thermogravimetric analysis and size exclusion chromatography, respectively.