Edible Packaging: Food for Thought and Food for the Future

Abstract

The problem regarding plastic wastes has been recognized as grave in the recent few years and a lot of solutions are surfacing to tackle this issue, one of them being edible packaging which aligns with circular economy. Edible packaging is completely biodegradable, environmentally friendly, increases the shelf life of the food, and hence it is a complete win-win situation. Few countries have already started working on this concept and have made edible coatings out of proteins, lipids, and polysaccharides, thus increasing the nutritional value of the food. Further, studies are being conducted on new raw materials and modifications depending on the demands of the consumers. While developed countries like the USA have already started using edible packages at least on a smaller scale, introducing the concept of edible packages to countries like India is comparatively more challenging. The concept of edible packages is being improved by the addition of nano-based packaging which increases the strength, stability, flexibility of packaging, and barrier properties that are necessary for edible packaging. This review shall mainly focus on the various types of edible packaging and provide an insight into its potential applications in the food industry along with its contribution towards a sustainable environment.