Silver bionanocomposites as active food packaging: recent advances & future trends tackling the food waste crisis

Trotta, F. ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9170-2029, Da Silva, S., Massironi, A., Mirpoor, S. F. ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9172-794X, Lignou, S. ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6971-2258, Khalil Ghawi, S. and Charalampopoulos, D. ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1269-8402 (2023) Silver bionanocomposites as active food packaging: recent advances & future trends tackling the food waste crisis. Polymers, 15 (21). 4243. ISSN 2073-4360 doi: 10.3390/polym15214243

Abstract/Summary

Food waste is a pressing global challenge leading to over $1 trillion lost annually and contributing up to 10% of global greenhouse gas emissions. Extensive study has been directed toward the use of active biodegradable packaging materials to improve food quality, minimize plastic use, and en-courage sustainable packaging technology development. However, this has been achieved with limited success, which can mainly be attributed to poor material properties and high production costs. In the recent literature, the integration of silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) has shown to improve the properties of biopolymer, prompting the development of bionanocomposites. Furthermore, the antibacterial properties of AgNPs against foodborne pathogens leads towards food shelf-life im-provement and provides a route towards reducing food waste. However, few reviews have ana-lyzed AgNPs holistically throughout a portfolio of biopolymers from an industrial perspective. Hence, this review critically analyses the antibacterial, barrier, mechanical, thermal, and water resistance properties of AgNP-based bionanocomposites. These advanced materials are also discussed in terms of food packaging applications and assessed in terms of their performance in enhancing food shelf-life. Finally, the current barriers towards the commercialization of AgNP bionanocomposites are critically discussed to provide an industrial action plan towards the development of sustainable packaging materials to reduce food waste.

Item Type	Article
URI	https://reading-clone.eprints-hosting.org/id/eprint/113821
Identification Number/DOI	10.3390/polym15214243
Refereed	Yes
Divisions	Life Sciences > School of Chemistry, Food and Pharmacy > Department of Food and Nutritional Sciences > Food Research Group
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