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Packaging is inseparable retainer of almost all food products. However, most of produced packaging ends as packaging waste after consumption of the product. Increasing amounts of packaging waste that should be managed represents serious challenge of every modern society. There are many different approaches to address this subject, amongst which biodegradable, natural biopolymer-based or even edible packaging holds considerable potential. In this paper, a by-product of edible oil industry, left after completed extraction by cold pressing of oil from hulls of pumpkin seeds, was used to produce biopolymer packaging films. Pumpkin oil cake was used to produce composite bio-based films. Different filtration of film forming suspension was applied in order to test composite film production using different filtration fractions, leading to higher process yield and minimizing waste. In addition, films were casted on surface, about ten times larger comparing to the cast surface typically reported for these types of films in the literature, in order to test the possibility for commercial production and scale up process. Also, casted mass of film forming suspension was varied in order to define minimal casting mass per unit area. Presented results showed that biopolymer films based on the pumpkin oil cake can be successfully produced in sheets (50x35 cm), compared to films earlier produced in the form of discs with diameter 12 cm. Different filtration fractions from initial film forming suspension can be used for film formation, leading to increased production yield. Different filtration fractions lead to different film properties that should be adjusted according to selected application. Casted mass of film forming suspension was successfully decreased (comparing to earlier literature data) without compromising film functional properties and minimal casting mass was defined as 26 g/m2.

Bilayer biodegradable films based on pumpkin oil cake (PuOC) and zein, as well as pouches made from these materials, were prepared, and the changes of their mechanical, physicochemical and barrier properties were analyzed during four weeks of storage. Heat seal quality of formed pouches and composition of the gas atmosphere in the pouches were also monitored. The results showed that the bilayer film had a thickness of 300 ± 10 (μm), and no its changes were observed during the storage time. The tensile strength of the tested film increased slightly in the third week, but the elongation at break showed a decreasing trend during the whole storage period. The decreases in the moisture content, total soluble matter and swelling of the obtained film, were also observed. After one month of storage, the O2 transmission rate of tested films, increased from 27 to 64 (ml/m2 24h 1 bar), and the CO2 gas transmission rate from 147 to 188 (ml/m2 24h 1 bar). The heat seal strength of the PuOC/Zein pouches decreased during the whole storage period. The percentage of O2 in PuOC/Zein pouches increased up to 7 times during the storage period; however, the percentage of CO2 decreased up to 18 times already after one week, and then remained stable in the rest of the storage period. These results are, to a smaller extent, due to the gas transmission rate through the material, especially for CO2 , and to a greater extent, due to the low heat seal strength, which decreased through the storage period, and probably influenced the content of the gases in the pouches.[Project of the Serbian Ministry of Education, Science and Technological Development, Grant no. 46010]

Functional food is positioned above the traditional, with the potential to improve human health. Thanks to very good physico-mechanical and barrier properties polymers became very popular in food industry as a packaging materials. Wild range of fermented dairy products could be packed in this packaging materials according to their’s inertness as well. Functional milk beverage was obtained from milk with 0,9% milk fat content by applying 10% v/v of kombucha’s inoculum cultivated on a black tea sweetened with sucrose. The beverage was packed in a different packaging materials: polyamid-polyethylen (PA/PE) coextruded foil bags and polyprophylen (PP) cups closed with aluminium (Al) foil lids under atmospheric conditions (ATM). Beverages were storaged for 15 days at 4°C. The quality of kombucha inoculum, milk and obtained kombucha fermented milk beverage were analysed. Characterization of the packaging materials was done by investigating physico-mechanical, barrier and structural properties. The composition and changes in the headspace atmosphere, after production and during the storage, were analysed. The influence of packaging material properties and packaging conditions on the biochemical transformations of the milk’s components (the content of: lactose, L-lactic acid, D-galactose, ethanol, B1 and B2 vitamins) influenced by kombucha starter were analysed as well. On the bases of the obtained results of characterisation of packaging materials, it can be concluded that PA/PE and PP materials are proper to be used for analysed beverage’s packaging. Also, there is no significant difference in content of components which were quantified, between analysed materials in correlation with the packed fermented milk beverage. [Projekat Ministarstva nauke Republike Srbije, br. III-46009]

Growing consumer demand for the food without chemical preservatives focused significant extent of research in the direction of finding natural compounds that can be used in food preservation. In this context, natural substances with strong antimicrobial and antioxidant properties, like essential oils, as well as natural biopolymers, particularly draw attention. Natural biopolymers can serve as carriers of the active components, such as essential oils in order of their sustained release to the food during storage, and may themselves exhibit activity in protecting foods from oxidation and/or microbial spoilage. Chitosan has been extensively studied as semi-natural polymer with expressed bioactive properties. While antimicrobial activity of chitosan solution in different acids has been confirmed towards different bacteria, yeasts and moulds, reports concerning intensity, underlying machanism and different factors afecting antioxidant activity of chitosan vary through the available literature. This paper presents a review in the field of antioxidative activity of chitosan with different properties, as well as chitosan based biopolymer films in order to clarify this aspect of chitosan bioactivity and confront different reports found in the literature.

Properties of poly (lactic acid) (PLA) and its nanocomposites, with silica nanoparticles (SiO2), as filler were investigated. Neat PLA films and PLA films with different percentage of hydrophobic fumed silica nanoparticles (0.2, 0.5, 1, 2, 3 and 5 wt. %) were prepared by solution casting method. Several tools were used to characterize the influence of different silica content on crystalline behavior, and thermal, mechanical and barrier properties of PLA/SiO2 nanocomposites. Results from scanning electron microscope (SEM) showed that the nanocomposite preparation and selection of specific hydrophobic spherical nano filler provide a good dispersion of the silica nanoparticles in the PLA matrix. Addition of silica nanoparticles improved mechanical properties, the most significant improvement being observed for lowest silica content (0.2wt.%). Barrier properties were improved for all measured gases at all loadings of silica nanoparticles. The degree of crystallinity for PLA slightly increased by adding 0.2 and 0.5 wt. % of nano filler. [Projekat Ministarstva nauke Republike Srbije, br. III46001]

The aim of this work was to evaluate the simultaneous effect of glycerol (30%, 40%, 50%) and guar-xanthan gum addition (0.1%, 0.3%, 0.5%) effect on starch based edible film mechanical and barrier properties. According to Response Surface Methodology, the most influential parameter in the second order polynomial models calculation was the percentage of glycerol, while the linear term of guar-xanthan content was important only for second order polynomial model calculation for tensile strength and water vapor permeability. According to Principal Component Analysis, samples grouping along the first component are primarily due to the content of glycerol, which is also confirmed by ANOVA analysis. According Cluster Analysis, two separate clusters are observed on the dendrogram, which includes the right (with the increased value of tensile strength) and the left cluster (with the increased value of elongation break and water vapor permeability). The observed distance the two clusters is considerable (approx. 80). [Projekat Ministarstva nauke Republike Srbije, br. TR-31055: Osmotic dehydration of food - energy and environmental aspects of sustainable production]

The aim of this study was to evaluate bioactivity of chitosan film with incorporated caraway essential oil by measuring antioxidant and antimicrobial activity. A Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy was used to determine the potential interaction of functional groups of chitosan film and incorporated caraway essential oil. New detected peaks and main shifts in the peaks of chitosan spectra are attributed mainly to presence of s-(+)-carvone and limonene, the main components of caraway essential oil. The antioxidant activity of chitosan film was analyzed by DPPH method. Chitosan film without incorporated caraway essential oil showed the lowest scavenging ability (29.95%, after 24 h). The addition of different concentrations of caraway essential oil into chitosan film significantly enhanced antioxidant activity of pure chitosan film, reaching the maximum of 95%. ASTM E 2149 - 01 method was performed to evaluate the antimicrobial activity of chitosan films. The reduction of bacteria cell number in contact with examined films was tested on Gram-positive bacteria Staphylococcus aureus and Listeria monocytogenes and Gram-negative bacteria Escherichia coli and Salmonella Typhimurium. The most sensitive bacteria was Staphylococcus aureus and the most resistant bacteria was Salmonella Typhimurium for all tested films. These results suggested that incorporation of caraway essential oil into chitosan film significantly improved its antioxidant and antimicrobial activity. The film showed a great potential to be used as an active packaging material.

In order to extend product shelf life while preserving the quality scientific attention focused to biopolymers research that are base for edible films and coatings production. Another major advantage of this kind of food packaging is their eco-friendly status because biopolymers do not cause environmental problems as packaging materials derived from non-renewable energy sources do. Objective of this work was to review recently studied edible films and coatings - their sources, properties and possible application. As sources for edible biopolymers were highlighted polysaccharides, proteins and lipids. The most characteristic subgroups from each large group of compounds were selected and described regarding possible physical and mechanical protection; migration, permeation, and barrier functions. The most important biopolymers characteristic is possibility to act as active substance carriers and to provide controlled release. In order to achieve active packaging functions emulsifiers, antioxidants and antimicrobial agents can also be incorporated into film-forming solutions in order to protect food products from oxidation and microbial spoilage, resulting in quality improvement and enhanced safety. The specific application where edible films and coatings have potential to replace some traditional polymer packaging are explained. It can be concluded that edible films and coatings must be chosen for food packaging purpose according to specific applications, the types of food products, and the major mechanisms of quality deterioration.

The aim of this work was to study the changes in osmotically treated pork meat during rehydration. Meat samples were osmotically treated in sugar beet molasses solution, at temperature of (23±2)°C for 5 hours. After being osmotically treated, meat samples were rehydrated at constant temperature (20- 40°C) during different times (15-60 min) in distilled water. The effective diffusivity were between 8.35 and 9.11•10-10 (m2•s-1) for moisture, 6.30-6.94 • 10-10 (m2•s-1), for Na, 5.73-7.46 10-10 (m2•s-1), for K, 4.43-6.25 • 10-10 (m2•s-1), for Ca, 5.35-6.25 • 10-10 (m2•s-1), for Mg, 4.67-6.78 10-10 (m2•s-1), for Cu, 4.68-5.33 • 10-10 (m2•s-1), for Fe, 4.21-5.04 • 10-10 (m2•s-1), for Zn and 5.44-7.16 10-10 (m2•s-1), for Mn. Zugarramurdi and Lupin’s model was used to predict the equilibrium condition, which was shown to be appropriate for moisture uptake and solute loss during rehydration. [Projekat Ministarstva nauke Republike Srbije, br. TR-31055: Osmotic dehydration of food - energy and environmental aspects of sustainable production]

In this work, caraway or oregano essential oils were added to the cast chitosan film in an attempt to design a natural, biodegradable, bioactive (antioxidant and antimicrobial) packaging film. When the structure of the tested films was analyzed with Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, no significant differences were found between the chitosan film with and without essential oils of caraway or oregano. The lowest antioxidant activity, based on the scavenging of the stable DPPH• free radical, was detected for the chitosan film without oil addition, going from 11.64%, after 2.5 h to 28.96%, after 24 h. When the caraway essential oil was added to the chitosan film, the antioxidant activity was increased (p

Present study investigated effects of plasticizer contribution on structural, barrier and mechanical properties of corn starch based edible films. Films were obtained from solutions (containing gelatinized starch, polyol, guar-xantan gum modified mixture and water) by casting it on a Petri dish. Sorbitol acted as a plasticizer and guar-xantan modified mixture had role to enable better film folding and handling. Sorbitol was used in concentrations: 100, 130 and 160% (dry starch basis). The film proved to be strong, moderately flexible with good barrier properties to oxygen and water vapor. It was estimated that oxygen and water vapor permeability increases as plasticizer content in the film increases. Mechanical strength of films decreases due to plasticizer addition.

After functional phase, packaging becomes waste that is recycled or disposed of in landfills. Recently, numerus packages have been developed for assessing the packaging risk on the environment. We applied Gabi 4 Education software on polymer product packaging for meat products. The objective of first part of the paper was characterization of materials used for meat and meat products packaging in terms of mechanical and barrier properties. Results show that tested materials are able to keep protective atmosphere and contribute to the quality and sustainability of the product. Air permeability was 3.60 and 26.60 ml/m224h, and water vapor was 6.90 and 9.50 ml/m224h, respectively, for foils 1 and 2, as a result of different film composition. In second part, based on real data, Gabi 4 Education software is applied. The obtained results showed that organic compounds emissions have the highest impact on human health and the most damaging environmental impact observed was the emission of CO2.

Chitosan, the second most abundant polysaccharide in nature, after cellulose, has been tested for numerous applications, among which for edible film and coating. Chitosan-based coating showed positive results for shelf life prolongation of meet products. In this paper, dry fermented sausage (Petrovská klobása) was coated with chitosan-caraway film. The effect of coating on the moisture content, color and lipid oxidation was investigated during a fivemonth period of storage. The moisture content decreased rapidly during the storage and the coating did not slow down the loss of moisture. The Lightness (L*) of the sausage surface increased by the coating application, while the redness (a*) and yellowness (b*) did not change. The coated sausages showed a better color stability of the sausage core through the storage time. Also, coated sausage showed a better oxidative stability till the 60th day of storage, while this difference was not detected at the end of the storage period. Apart from slowing down sausage drying during the storage, chitosan-caraway coating was effective in preserving the sausage quality. [Projekat Ministarstva nauke Republike Srbije, br. TR31032]

When deciding what packaging is the most appropriate for a product there are many factors to be considered. One of them is the impact of the packaging on environment. In this work, life cycle inventory and life cycle assessment of two different volume packagings were compared. The data were collected on the types and amounts of materials and energy consumption in the process of packaging and distribution of hand cream packed in polypropylene jars of 200 and 350 mL. Life cycle inventory (LCI) and life cycle impact assessment (LCA) were calculated. It was found that the total mass flow was higher for the jars of 350 mL. After analyzing individual flows, it was found that in both cycles (polypropylene jars of 200 and 350 mL),the consumption of fresh water was a dominant flow. This fresh water flow is mostly (95%) consumed in the injection molding process of manufacturing jars from polypropylene granules. The LCA analysis showed no significant difference in global warming potential between different volume jars. The process that mostly affected global warming was the production of polypropylene jars from polypropylene granules by injection molding for both jar volumes. Judging by the global warming potential, there is no difference of the environmental impact between investigated jars, but considering the mass flow and water consumption, more environmental friendly were the 200 mL jars.

Polyethylene terephthalate (PET) has in the last several years become the main packaging material for many food products, particularly carbonated beverages and bottled water, as well as for products of chemical industry (packaging of various hygiene maintenance agents, pesticides, solvents, etc.). The strength and permeability properties of PET are very good for packaging of beverages, its resistance to chemicals is high and it has a high degree of transparency. Acetaldehyde and formaldehyde are formed during the thermoforming of PET containers. After cooling, acetaldehyde and formaldehyde remain trapped in the walls of a PET bottle and may migrate into the water after filling and storage. Since there are no migration tests in Serbia prescribed for the determination of acetaldehyde and formaldehyde, the purpose of the paper is to test the quantitative contents of carbonyl compounds (acetaldehyde and formaldehyde) in PET containers of different volumes, made by various manufacturers of bottled mineral carbonated and noncarbonated water, and exposed to different temperatures. In this study, the migration of acetaldehyde and formaldehyde from PET bottles into mineral carbonated and noncarbonated water was determined by high performance liquid chromatography. Taking into consideration that formaldehyde and acetaldehyde have no UV active or fluorescent group, the chromatography shall be preceded by derivatization in a closed system (due to a low boiling point of acetaldehyde and formaldehyde), which shall transform carbonyl compounds into UV active compounds.

The work is concerned with the effects of glycerol content and pH value of film forming solution on the functional properties of protein-based films. The films were produced of chicken breast proteins, dissolved under either acidic (pH 3) or alkaline (pH 11) conditions, with different concentrations of glycerol (35%, 50% and 65% w/w of protein content). Glycerol content affected significantly mechanical properties, water vapor permeability, color at pH 3 and film solubility (p

Dried fruits are very delicate to biochemical changes during storage, due to low water content, as well as low aw value. The shelf life of these products depends on aw value. Materials for dry fruits packaging are necessary to have appropriate barrier characteristics for water, oxygen, nitrogen and carbon dioxide molecules, as well as for electromagnetic rays, especially those with low wavelengths in UV region. During storage of packed dry fruits, qualitative changes, influenced by different packaging materials, may occur. The results of tested characteristics of different packaging materials, combination and their barrier features, as well as the qualitative changes of packaged dried apples are presented in this paper. The qualitative changes of color and sensory characteristics of packaged dried apples point out to influence of the type, combination as well as the barrier features of used packaging materials. .

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