Renovation of Agro-Waste for Sustainable Food Packaging: A Review

Author: mycolabadmin
1/27/2023
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Summary

This review explores how agricultural waste can be transformed into eco-friendly food packaging materials. Researchers are finding ways to extract valuable compounds like cellulose from crop residues and chitin from shrimp shells to create biodegradable packaging films that preserve food while reducing environmental pollution. These sustainable packaging alternatives perform as well as conventional plastics while being completely biodegradable, representing an important step toward a circular economy and reducing agricultural waste.

Background

Waste management in agriculture has become a critical concern as food production increases to meet growing population demands. Agricultural waste is rich in biocompounds including cellulose, hemicellulose, chitin, lignin, starch, and protein that have potential for sustainable material development. Conventional plastic packaging is a major source of environmental pollution, driving the need for eco-friendly alternatives.

Objective

This review examines the utilization of agro-waste from plant and animal sources for development of sustainable, eco-friendly food packaging systems. The study analyzes different types of agricultural residues, their composition, extraction methods, and applications in packaging material production while addressing production challenges and future prospects.

Results

Multiple successful applications identified including cellulose extraction from crop waste, lignocellulose nanofibers for reinforcement, chitosan from shrimp shells, gelatin from animal skin, and keratin from poultry feathers. These materials demonstrated improved mechanical properties, barrier properties, antimicrobial activity, and antioxidant capacity when incorporated into food packaging films and composites.

Conclusion

Agro-waste represents a valuable resource for sustainable food packaging development, supporting circular economy goals and reducing environmental pollution. Integration of extracted biocompounds into polymer matrices produces eco-friendly packaging with enhanced functional properties comparable to conventional materials. Future research should focus on optimizing extraction methods, improving scalability, and addressing production challenges for commercial viability.

Published in:Polymers (Basel),
Study Type:Review,
Source: 10.3390/polym15030648, PMID: 36771949