Recent advances on intelligent packaging as tools to reduce food waste

Abstract

Food waste is one of the main issues for international organisms. It is not only an ethical and economic issue but it also depletes the environment of limited natural resources. Among strategies suitable for fighting such challenge, intelligent packaging is an interesting tool to reduce waste derived from households and retailers. A revision of 45 recent advances in the area of optical systems for freshness monitoring is reported herein. The study covers fruits, vegetables, fish products and meat since they are the most representative fields of application. Furthermore, a discussion about the main research challenges and opportunities that will be faced by intelligent packaging in the coming years is included.

The role of smart packaging system in food supply chain

“…Some of these include temperature controlled and energy‐efficient storage systems, novel packaging materials and designs, as well as smart monitoring systems (Bahadur, Haque, Legwegoh, & Fraser, ; Foscaches, Sproesser, Quevedo‐Silva, & de Lima‐Filho, ; HLPE, ). Especially, advanced packaging techniques, including active packaging and SP, have been investigated and proved to be an essential tool for reducing the food waste, by guaranteeing food safety and fulfilling consumer expectations (Lipinski et al., ; Olsmats & Wallteg, ; Poyatos‐Racionero, Ros‐Lis, Vivancos, & Martínez‐Máñez, ; Pradeep, Junho, & Sanghoon, ). Although the electronics for SP have been significantly developed, like electrochemical sensors, E‐Tongues, and E‐Noses, current devices are usually complicated and expensive and are not yet ready to be integrated with real packages (Poyatos‐Racionero et al., ; Zou, Wan, Zhang, Ha, & Wang, ).…”

“…Especially, advanced packaging techniques, including active packaging and SP, have been investigated and proved to be an essential tool for reducing the food waste, by guaranteeing food safety and fulfilling consumer expectations (Lipinski et al., ; Olsmats & Wallteg, ; Poyatos‐Racionero, Ros‐Lis, Vivancos, & Martínez‐Máñez, ; Pradeep, Junho, & Sanghoon, ). Although the electronics for SP have been significantly developed, like electrochemical sensors, E‐Tongues, and E‐Noses, current devices are usually complicated and expensive and are not yet ready to be integrated with real packages (Poyatos‐Racionero et al., ; Zou, Wan, Zhang, Ha, & Wang, ). Nowadays, the “best before” and “sell by” or “use by” has become a norm in the food industry, however, it fails to deliver information on the state of food inside the package, thus “dynamic shelf‐life systems” should be introduced for simple interpretation (Poyatos‐Racionero et al., ).…”

Protein time–temperature sensor for intelligent starch polymers

“…Such temperature chromic sensibility makes the Mb and NO‐myoglobin interesting protein additives for a sensor that could change color related to time–temperature exposure. Also the GRASS (generally recognized as safe) status of Mb is relevant for its future regulation as intelligent polymers additive for food contact (Poyatos‐Racionero, Ros‐Lis, Vivancos, & Martínez‐Máñez, ).…”

Possible applications of metal nanoparticles in antimicrobial food packaging

“…According to Food and Agriculture Organization (2011), nowadays, globally approximately one-third of food produced for human consumption, which amounts to around 1.3 billion tons, is lost annually, and households generate nearly 50% of waste in Western developed countries. In developing countries, most of the waste is generated in the course of production and processing (Poyatos-Racionero, Ros-Lis, Vivancos, & Martinez-Manez, 2018). Nanotechnology offers numerous solutions for the packaging industry.…”