Biodegradable Polymers in Food Packaging
Swati Bharati, Vinod L. Gaikwad
Abstract
Food packaging plays a vital role in reducing the ecological footprint of packaged food or its degradation. The degradation of food occurs due to the morphological and structural transformation that affects the properties of polymer materials. Degradation during storage is avoided by evaluating and understanding the properties of the polymer used for food packaging. Biodegradable food packaging is attracting a lot of attention in the area of present interest such as recycling, sustainable development, or environmental protection compared to non-degradable polymers. So, the present chapter focuses on the various biomass-derived biodegradable polymers like polysaccharides (cellulose, starch, galactomannans, chitosan, carrageenan, alginate), protein (soy protein, whey protein, zein, gluten, casein, collagen, gelatin), microorganisms derived 684(polyhydroxyalkanoate, poly (3-hydroxybutyrate), poly (3-hydroxybutyrate-co-3-hydroxyvalerate), xanthan), and synthetic polymer (polyvinyl alcohol, polyglycolide, polylactic acid, poly (ε-caprolactone), poly (butylene succinate), poly (trimethylene terephthalate), poly (butylene adipate-co-terephthalate)). These are used in food packaging as well as have different properties of a biodegradable polymer. The biodegradable polymeric properties can be improved by mixing with other polymers, emulsifiers, surfactants, lipids, or other additives that help change the microstructure, surface, barrier, and mechanical properties of films, which are also discussed.