Current environmental concerns have encouraged the food packaging industry to search for biobased barriers produced from renewable material sources. One candidate for renewable barrier applications is nanocellulose which has been found to possess excellent barrier properties, especially against grease and oxygen. However, most of the research presented so far has been based on small, batchproduced films or coatings of nanocellulose. Reports on continuous processing of nanocellulose into films or coatings, which is required for large-scale, low-cost production, are few. The current work presents a roll-to-roll coating process of cellulose nanofiber (CNF) suspensions on paperboard for renewable barrier applications. The coating apparatus used herein provides a low effective viscosity to enable the processing of the highly viscous nanocellulose suspensions into a coating on a paper web. The impact of various process parameters on the coating quality and runnability are discussed. Strength (tensile and burst) and barrier properties (air permeability, water and heptane vapor transmission rate, and mineral oil and grease barrier) of the CNF-coated paperboards are promising and mostly superior to what has previously been reported.

Faba bean has gained increasing attention from the food industry and the consumers mainly due to the quality of its protein fraction. Fermentation has been recently recognized as the most efficient tool for improving its nutritional and organoleptic properties. In this study, faba bean flour fermented with Lactobacillus plantarum DPPMAB24W was used to fortify semolina pasta. Pasta samples including different percentages of fermented faba bean flour were produced at the pilot-plant level and characterized using an integrated approach for chemical, nutritional, technological, and sensory features. At a substitution level of 30%, pasta had a more homogeneous texture and lower cooking loss compared to 50% addition. The impact of faba bean flour addition on pasta technological functionality, particularly of the protein fraction, was also assessed by scanning electron microscopy and textural profile analysis. Compared to traditional (semolina) pasta and pasta containing unfermented faba bean flour, the nutritional profile (in vitro protein digestibility and nutritional indexes - chemical score (CS), sequence of limiting essential amino acids, Essential Amino Acid Index (EAAI), Biological Value (BV), Protein Efficiency Ratio (PER), and Nutritional Index (NI)) and the resistant starch content of pasta containing 30% fermented faba bean flour markedly improved, while the starch hydrolysis rate decreased, without negatively affecting technological and sensory features. The use of fermentation technology appears to be a promising tool to enhance the quality of pasta and to promote the use of faba bean flour.

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Biodegradable coatings and films of cellulose nanofibers (CNFs) or a combination of CNFs and inorganic fillers, such as clay or calcium carbonate (CaCO 3 ), can provide a replacement for non-biodegradable plastic coatings as barrier layers in packaging boards. In this work, transparent composite films were prepared from CNFs of Pinus radiata and Eucalyptus using different amounts of clay and CaCO 3 as fillers. The impact of raw material (softwood vs. hardwood), TEMPO oxidation levels and filler type (clay vs. CaCO 3 ) on film properties was studied. Pinus radiata CNF films had superior mechanical properties to Eucalyptus CNF films, but no significant differences were observed in the barrier and optical properties. Clay seemed to work better as filler compared to CaCO 3 , in terms of its impact on film properties. Composite films with CaCO 3 as filler were highly brittle with inferior properties to clay-CNF films, and an uneven distribution and agglomeration of the CaCO 3 mineral particles was evident in SEM images. Based on the results, clay as filler in CNF coatings is preferred for targeting packaging board applications. Rheological characterisation of the CNF suspensions revealed shear-thinning behaviour, with the CNF from Eucalyptus having higher viscosities and lower power-law indices when compared to the CNF from P. radiata.

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