Edible films

Abstract

Self-supporting edible films are one of the emerging technologies used today to optimize food preservation. With an ever increasing demand of consumers for high quality food products in addition to environmental concerns regarding the adverse effect of plastic packaging, food industry drive to develop and implement new types of edible films. The use of edible films as food packaging can play an important role in the quality, safety, transportation, storage, and display of a wide range of fresh and processed foods. Edible films can provide replacement and/or fortification of natural layers preventing moisture losses, while selectively allowing for controlled exchange of important gases such as oxygen and carbon dioxide, therefore, extending shelf life by minimizing food quality deterioration. Moreover, edible films can act as carriers of food additives such as vitamins, antimicrobial and antioxidants agents, providing a highly localized functional effect and improving food organoleptic properties. In addition, edible films could add value to agricultural and food industries by-products, since they are formed from various renewable eco-friendly and edible substances such as proteins, lipids or carbohydrates. Lipid-based films have good water barrier properties but form brittle films. On the other hand, protein and polysaccharide based films generally have good mechanical properties and thus they may withstand handling. However, they are not good barriers to water vapor. The use of blends comprising such compounds or their combination with lipids is thus a way of developing composite edible films matching the requirements for use as food packaging. Accordingly, this chapter discusses the latest advances on edible films aimed for food packaging.