Biodegradable Packaging Materials from Animal Processing Co-Products and Wastes: An Overview

Abstract

Biodegradable polymers are non-toxic, environmentally friendly biopolymers with considerable mechanical and barrier properties that can be degraded in industrial or home composting conditions. These biopolymers can be generated from sustainable natural sources or from the agricultural and animal processing co-products and wastes. Animals processing co-products are low value, underutilized, non-meat components that are generally generated from meat processing or slaughterhouse such as hide, blood, some offal etc. These are often converted into low-value products such as animal feed or in some cases disposed of as waste. Collagen, gelatin, keratin, myofibrillar proteins, and chitosan are the major value-added biopolymers obtained from the processing of animal’s products. While these have many applications in food and pharmaceutical industries, a significant amount is underutilized and therefore hold potential for use in the generation of bioplastics. This review summarizes the research progress on the utilization of meat processing co-products to fabricate biodegradable polymers with the main focus on food industry applications. In addition, the factors affecting the application of biodegradable polymers in the packaging sector, their current industrial status, and regulations are also discussed.

Physico-Chemical Characterization of Keratin from Wool and Chicken Feathers Extracted Using Refined Chemical Methods

“…The likely presence of unfolded proteins in keratin from feathers can be correlated with the higher viscoelastic properties of hydrogels they are able to form with respect to those synthesized using wool, as observed in [ 45 ]. As a matter of fact, in the literature, the production of blended films with wool–plasticizer combinations are less diffuse than with feather keratin, using typical plasticizers such as citric acid [ 46 ] or glycerol [ 47 ], where the lower properties might be compensated by a higher film translucency. In any case, these studies seldom posed the question of reducing the residue by optimizing keratin extraction for film production, and, in the long run, trying to hypothesize possible applications for it, in order to follow a circular economy-based approach [ 48 ].…”

A Review on Biodegradable Packaging Films from Vegetative and Food Waste

“…The article is summed up with limitations, challenges, and future prospects of such wonder materials which can be identified as “ Best from the Waste” . The packaging materials having only pure animal source realized from by‐products of animal processing and waste, [29] nanocomposites of biopolymers and nanofillers used specifically in electronic packaging, [30,31] cosmetics, and pharmaceutical packaging synthesized purposely from natural raw materials [32] are few parallel research frontiers excluded to remain focused on vegetative waste. However, the discussion of non‐vegetative sources is only included when a component of vegetative waste is reported.…”

Application of Clove Oil and Sonication Process on the Influence of the Functional Properties of Mung Bean Flour-Based Edible Film

“…Recently, the development of eco-friendly biodegradable and edible polymeric packages from natural food raw materials has been widely explored to optimize their characteristics and applications [ 12 ]. A biodegradable polymer is formed by combining biodegradable and natural functional groups in its structure, it can easily be degraded by fungi, algae, and bacteria, and can decompose into water, biomass, CO 2 , and methane [ 13 , 14 ]. In recent times, active biodegradable packaging films have been thriving as they can incorporate various bioactive ingredients or essential oils to improve structural integrity and barrier, as well as antioxidant and antimicrobial properties.…”