Cutting-edge technologies for intelligent and sustainable food packaging
Spoiled food can be difficult for consumers to detect, and carries potentially severe consequences. One solution may be new combinations of packaging materials and sensors, which both help preserve food and indicate when it has gone bad. The EU-funded SUSFOFLEX (Smart and sustainable food packaging utilizing flexible printed intelligence and materials technologies) project set out to develop such technologies. The packaging solutions were intended to be eco-friendly and sustainable, and also able to improve food shelf life and reduce food losses using nanomaterial sensors. SUSFOFLEX focused on fresh-cut fruit because of its brief shelf life and safety and food issues, but its approach can also be applied to other categories such as fresh-cut meats. After studying various conventional biopolymer packaging materials, food-related sensors and market expectations, project partners used the findings to develop several innovative materials, namely the components, packaging and smart sensors. Sustainability was achieved by developing biopolymers from eco-friendly, biodegradable materials obtained from organic agro-food by-products or traditional packaging materials combined with previous solutions. The improved barrier and antioxidant properties of the materials extend shelf life while reducing food loss and waste. Three types of sensors capable of detecting the quality of food products were developed, and a patent is pending on three different packaging designs. Lastly, the SUSFOFLEX team evaluated the environmental risks of the new packaging materials, particularly the stability and biodegradability of the polymers and the potentially harmful release of materials from sensors. No adverse effects were found during testing. SUSFOFLEX introduced new smart food packaging materials that indicate spoilage. Consumers, the environment and industry will clearly benefit from the impact of such solutions.
Keywords
Food packaging, smart packaging, spoilage, shelf life, nanomaterial sensors, biopolymer
