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The developed CS/CAEE edible active films possess UV-Vis light blocking property with ∼27% enhanced antioxidant activity and ∼60% reduced WVP. The edible coatings are nontoxic and extended the shelf life of green chillies at room temperature.

The developed edible coating with curcumin facilitated iron functionalized cellulose nanofiber (f-CNF) reinforced chitosan (CS) were applied on kiwifruits for maintaining the quality during storage life. The f-CNF was fabricated via anchoring iron particles onto the surface of CNF as evident by FESEM, FETEM, and XRD analysis. The inclusion of f-CNF and curcumin as a component of edible coating can provide a synergistic effect in maintaining the quality of kiwifruits. The f-CNF (1.5 wt%) dispersed CS edible coating assisted by curcumin provided a lamellar and heterogonous surface morphology with a hazy appearance. The used edible coating materials were effective in reducing mass loss, firmness loss, respiration rate, and microbial count of the kiwifruits during storage life (10 days at 10 °C). Additionally, color, and physiological properties of kiwifruits can be modified by using the addressed edible coating materials.

The current work demonstrates a unique approach of utilizing nanochitosan (NCS) based edible nanomodifier for functionalizing starch (ST)/guar gum (GG) biocomposite with superior packaging properties targeting stringent edible food packaging on fresh cuts. The effectiveness of NCS in terms of structure-property-performance analysis of ST/GG biocomposites was done. The inclusion of NCS to the biocomposites of ST/GG converts its hydrophilic surface nature to hydrophobic (contact angle of ~114°) by modifying the surface features. The addition of NCS improved the thermal stability, where the observed 10% weight degradation of ST biocomposites were ~79.36, ~80.49, and ~186.89 °C for neat ST, ST/GG biocomposites, and ST/GG/NCS (3% w/v) (ST-GG-NCS3), respectively. The observed transparency of ST, ST-GG, and ST-GG-NCS3 were 21, 8, and 48%, respectively in the visible region suggesting consumer preference for transparent packaging materials. The wt% of O, C and N elements in ST-GG-NCS3 as observed by EDX spectra were ~ 50.2, ~47.6, and ~ 2.2%, respectively, which confirm the safety of the materials. Additionally, it is noteworthy to mention that the storage quality in terms of microbial growth, pH change, color attributes, and weight loss are better preserved when used as an edible coating on cut apple fruits.

The article demonstrates the effect of the respiration rate of fig fruit at different storage temperatures (5–35 °C) and the designing of its modified atmospheric packaging. The average O2 consumption rates $$\left( {{\text{R}}_{{{\text{O}}_{2} }} } \right)$$ and CO2 evolution rate $$\left( {{\text{R}}_{{{\text{CO}}_{2} }} } \right)$$ of fig fruits within 5–35 °C were varied from 4.02 to 26.18 mL kg−1 h−1 and 4.89 to 29.19 mL kg−1 h−1, respectively. The respiration rate at 35 °C was increased up to 6.51 times in terms of O2 and 5.97 times in terms of CO2 than the respiration rate at 5 °C. The results showed that under steady state condition at 35 °C there were almost 43.3% and 42.8% decrease in $${\text{R}}_{{{\text{O}}_{2} }}$$ and $${\text{R}}_{{{\text{CO}}_{2} }}$$ values with respect to increase in time. The enzyme kinetics model in combination with the Arrhenius equation precisely predicted the respiration rate of fig fruit at different storage temperatures. The maximum respiration rate (Vm) for the enzyme kinetics model was increased from 10.910 to 45.620 mL kg−1 h−1 in terms of O2 and from 12.670 to 50.310 mL kg−1 h−1 in terms of CO2. The designing of modified atmospheric packaging was done to evaluate the influence of time and temperature on the respiration rate of fig fruit with various packaging materials. The modified atmosphere in polypropylene package with equilibrium concentration for O2 (0.0878) and CO2 (0.0971) was established within a period of 14 h was found to be the best suitable packaging material for extending the shelf life of fig fruit.

Since the invention of synthetic plastics in the 1950s, they have inevitably dominated all other materials such as metals, glass, wood, etc [...]

Active food packaging is crucial nowadays due to the rising consumer demands for less processed and preservative-free foods. Also, due to growing concern and overuse of synthetic non-biodegradable polymers, there is rising interest in renewable biopolymer materials in the packaging system. This review comprehensively discusses the status of sustainable biopolymer-based functional films incorporated with various antimicrobial nanofillers for active food packaging applications. The utilization of these nanofillers directly in packaging materials averts the use of preservatives in food. Hence, this review primarily focuses on the recent research advancements involving the utilization of antimicrobial nanofillers in biopolymeric food packaging materials. The biopolymers, mainly polysaccharides, protein, and synthetic polyesters-based, originated from various sources like plants, animals, or microorganisms are briefly reviewed. Further, the antimicrobial nanofillers used in the preparation of bio-based composites are comprehensively discussed. The recent progress on using various biopolymeric nanocomposites in antimicrobial food packaging is also summarized. Finally, the issue related to safety concerns about the use of bio-based nanocomposite are also briefly stated.

This paper demonstrates the fabrication of silk nanodisc (SND) dispersed chitosan (CS) based new edible coating as a candidate for superior thermal, hydrophobic, optical, mechanical, and physicochemical properties, which further provide remarkable storage quality for banana fruits. Fabrication of SND is attained following acid hydrolysis of silk fibroin (SF), where the successful nanostructures formulations are analyzed by FESEM, FETEM and XRD analysis delivering disc shaped morphology with amplified crystallinity (~95.0%). The SF has been fabricated from waste muga cocoons using the degumming process. The superior thermal stability of SND compared to SF portray a new era in required heat resistant packaging. The effectiveness of SND is investigated on packaging properties of CS biocomposites including thermal, wettability, mechanical, color, surface morphology, and others. Wettability of SND incorporated CS biocomposite enhanced by ~ 10° suggesting improved hydrophobicity. The edible coatings are a new candidate to improve the shelf life of bananas over 7 days at 25 °C for prevailing original weight, optical property, firmness, and others.

Edible films and coatings are considered as a biopreservative technique used for protecting food products in an eco-friendly manner and in recent years, it is extensively applied as a primary packaging system for various food products due to the existing unique traits. The easily deteriorating nature of highly perishable products such as fruits and vegetables, fish, meat and dairy products arises due to microbial attack and environment degrading factors. Further, the fruits and vegetables have high nutritional nature and are directed to store for future availability, with minimized postharvest loss and targeted to bring them safely with maintained quality to the end users. The other nutritional food products such as meat and meat products, fish and fish products are easily degraded due to microbial attack, which in turn alter the nutritional value, texture, and overall acceptability. In this regards, the edible films and coatings are required to protect food products from deterioration during handling, processing, and transportation. In this context, the naturally derived biopolymers from the renewable sources such as carbohydrates, proteins, lipids and their combination are used for fabrication of edible films and coatings. The edible films and coatings provide improved quality and shelf life of stored food products by creating a protective layer against physical and mechanical damage, providing suitable controlled atmosphere and further, act as a semi-permeable barrier for moisture, gasses, and vapor. Besides, these films deliver benefits to the consumer by incorporating various bioactive agents including antioxidant, nutraceuticals, antimicrobials, flavoring, and coloring agent. Further, the quality attributes of bakery and fried food products are also maintained using edible films and coatings such as crispiness and oil uptake ratio. Based on this discussion, the current chapter discusses the application of edible films and coatings for targeted food products such as fruits and vegetables, fish and fish products, bakery products, and others in maintaining the food quality and further, improve the shelf life of food products.

The bioactive compounds are a kind of extra nutritional components with health stimulating and therapeutic benefits and are naturally available in our daily diet. These are the significant medicinal compounds of the Indian Ayurveda medicinal system and are used for centuries to cure many diseases. This chapter discusses the available bioactive compounds, their current trend in global market, and the advanced research in edible packaging. Further, the chapter enlightens the major classification of bioactive compounds that include carbohydrates, lipids, phenolics, alkaloids, and terpenoids. The edible packaging system has some challenges such as high cost, regulatory requirements, consumer acceptance, need to overcome to make more industrially viable products. Furthermore, these bioactive compounds have exceptional antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, antimicrobial, antitumor, antidiabetic, antiarthritic, and neuroprotective activities. Besides, the idea behind including nanodelivery system-assisted bioactive compounds to edible packaging helps in enhancing the nutritional value, health benefits of food products along with improved packaging attributes. Additionally, the several biopolymer composite-based edible food packaging facilitated by bioactive compounds helps in the enhanced shelf life of packaged food products with maintained quality. In this regard, there are several targeted nanodelivery systems extensively used to deliver bioactive compounds to food systems specifically in edible food packaging such as polymer nanoparticles, nanoencapsulation, nanoemulsion, solid–lipid nanoparticles, nanostructured lipid carrier, nanoliposome bioactive compounds, and others, which will be discussed elaborately in the current chapter.

In this chapter, a discussion on the use of various inorganic nanoparticles such as silver nanoparticles, titanium dioxide, silicon dioxide, zinc oxide, iron oxides, and others is made with relevant application in edible food packaging. Further, the effectiveness of inorganic nanoparticles in preventing foodborne diseases is also discussed, where the inorganic nanoparticles can release biocide into food products. The inorganic nanomaterials are used in addition to polymer composites to improve the efficiency of the packaging materials in terms of fortified food products and nutraceutical-added food products. Further, these inorganic nanoparticles also increase the functional properties of edible bionanocomposite films. The chapter is also focused to discuss the updated knowledge in recent research on edible nanocomposites-based packaging with multiple inorganic nanofillers.

The inclusion of chitosan (CS) nanostructured materials as a constituent of edible food packaging is a potential candidate to be used as an alternative against existing conventional packaging materials for attaining enhanced product life of perishable food products. The several properties such as excellent physicochemical properties, bioactivity, antimicrobial, antifungal, health benefits, and packaging properties are better obtained by the use of CS nanomaterials as a biocomposite or as an individual material. Further, the CS nanostructured materials are generally availed in the forms of nanocrystals, nanofibers, and nanoparticle (NP), which can be fabricated using several processes, where optimization of the processing conditions deliver targeted morphology. The several processes for fabricating CS nanoparticles (CSNPs) include ionotropic gelation, microemulsion, emulsification solvent diffusion, polyelectrolyte complexes, reverse micellar, solvent evaporation, coprecipitation, complex coacervation, and other methods. The chapter discusses the fabrication methods and property analysis of CS-based nanostructured materials for delivering the tailored packaging properties to act as a potential material in developing edible films and coatings. Interestingly, CSNPs-aided composites help to improve the shelf life of food products while maintaining the several quality parameters throughout the storage life. The effect of various sources and molecular weight of CS and their effectiveness to fabricate the edible food packaging will be discussed in the current chapter. Additionally, the use of CSNPs as an edible-coating material further provides a strategical way to improve the functionality and performance of food products in terms of microbiological property, weight stability, texture property, and others, which is detailed in the current chapter.

The current chapter addresses the use of cellulose-based nanostructured materials obtained from several renewable resources (plant fibers, wood, microbes, etc.) for edible food packaging-based emerging techniques. The nanocelluloses having characteristic attributes such as renewability, biocompatibility, biodegradability, tunable surface chemistry, nanodimensions, low cost, and others make it a remarkable candidate to be used in developing edible food packaging. In this regard, the present chapter provides an insight into the use of several cellulose nanoform fabrication methods to obtain tailor-made properties for targeted edible food packaging. It is noteworthy to mention that the addition of nanocellulose for developing biocomposite-based edible food packaging can help to improve the packaging properties such as barrier property, mechanical property, thermal property, optical property, and other physicochemical properties providing an ability in delivering tunable attributes. In this section, the preparation and characterization of various cellulose-based nanostructured materials are discussed with suitability of their applications as a potential candidate in edible food packaging. The approaches utilized to modify the surface of nanocellulose for obtaining better dispersion in the fabrication of polymer composites with required properties are also briefly discussed. Additionally, cellulose nanomaterials are commonly applied in the development of both edible and non-edible food packaging materials for their remarkable properties which can further be modified by varying the forms of nanomaterials such as nanocrystals, nanofibers, and nanowhiskers. The chapter also details various case studies of developing biocomposites using nanocelluloses for design and development of edible packaging materials for perishable food products. The development of edible coating on food products utilizing nanocellulose-based materials is further addressed elaborately.

The present chapter addresses the several characteristics of biopolymer nanocomposite in developing edible food packaging including sustainability, packaging attributes, active functionality, delivery systems, and improved food properties during storage life. The various nanostructured forms with the strategical synthesis mechanism for edible films and coatings have been discussed elaborately. Furthermore, the multifunctional property of biopolymer composites is a crucial factor in regard to offering enhanced packaging and food properties with a proper storage life of perishable food products. However, the considerable aspects of edible packaging fabrication are physical property, mechanical property, barrier property, thermal property, and others have been detailed in this chapter. The nanocomposite-based research has gained an extreme enthrallment for driving greener routes in packaging sectors as an alternate to the existing conventional plastic. In this regard, the recent advances of biopolymer composites available in developing edible films and coatings with an improved shelf life of food products have also been demonstrated.

In the current scenario of the emerging nation, the development of edible food packaging in a laboratory or commercial scale has immensely attracted the growing manufacturers. Based on this, the current chapter addresses various targeted biomaterials and synthesis strategies for fabricating edible food packaging. The chapter introduces the characteristics attributes of available biomaterials including polysaccharides, proteins, lipids, fats, and their modification strategies to overcome the existing shortcomings of biopolymers such as poor water solubility, inferior mechanical properties, hydrophilicity, and others in edible food packaging. Further, the use of nanomaterials in edible films and coatings has provided additional benefits in obtaining improved product quality and shelf life. In this regard, a brief overview of using several nanosystems-assisted edible food packaging such as polymeric nanoparticles, inorganic nanofillers, biocomposites, nanoencapsulation, and nanoemulsion has been made. However, the successful development of edible food packaging and its commercialization depends on both selected materials and processing techniques. The edible food packaging is generally availed in the form of edible films and coatings being developed using different approaches with existing benefits and shortcomings. The various processes for fabricating edible coatings including dipping, spraying (conventional and electrospraying), dripping, foaming, fluidized bed coating, brushing, panning, etc., have been detailed. Additionally, the adopted methods for fabricating edible films are solution casting, extrusion, compression molding, blown films, etc. The selection of processing techniques for the development of edible food packaging is dependent on batch size, targeted food products, food properties, geometry of food products, and other attributes. Thus, both the materials property and synthesis strategies play a major role in developing successful edible food packaging materials for highly perishable food products and others.

The chapter is focused to discuss the status of food-grade lipid nanoparticles in developing edible films and coatings for enhanced packaging appearance, properties, and further discuss the promising applications in increasing the shelf life of food products. The methods for developing lipid nanoparticles are high energy and low energy approaches, where the high energy approach includes the use of mechanical devices. Further, the various lipid-based nanosystems for fabricating edible food packaging applications include nanoemulsions, nanoliosomes, solid–lipid nanoparticles, and other lipid nanocarriers. In this context, the chapter details the various characteristics features of the mentioned lipid nanoparticles in terms of structure and dimensions, composition, interfacial properties, thickness of interfacial coating layers, surface polarity, environmental effects and digestibility, and other physical properties. Additionally, a discussion on lipid nanoparticle-based edible food packaging for prolonged shelf life of food products with their safety assessment has been made in this chapter.

The chapter addresses the prospective of starch nanostructured materials in developing biocomposite-based edible food packaging in the form of edible films and coatings for improved quality of food products. The starch nanomaterials have a strong reinforcing effect, which makes it a promising nanomaterial in edible and non-edible green packaging. Starch bionanomaterials have several attractive features to be used in edible packaging such as biobased source, biocompatible, non-toxic, thickeners, rheology enhancer, film-forming property, water binding capacity, emulsion stabilizing property, foam forming capacity, and others, which make it a promising candidate for food systems. Additionally, the native starch granules consisting of semi-crystalline and amorphous nature are used to develop starch nanocrystals via acid hydrolysis (such as sulfuric acid) by removing the amorphous part. The starch nanocrystal has higher surface area than native starch granules, providing improved packaging property when used as a reinforcing agents. However, the fabrication of starch bionanomaterials via an industrially viable approach is challenging due to the acid waste generation and longer processing time. The limitation of starch includes hydrophilicity, highly prone to retrograde, thermally sensitive, low shear resistance, and others. The strategical modification of starches is obtained via several routes such as cross-linking, chemical modification, physical modification, enzymatic modification, fabrication of biocomposites, etc., for improved functionality. The chapter also details the various aspects of starch and derivatives for developing biocomposites and blends for edible food packaging applications including barrier property, mechanical property, thermal property, color property, and others for prolonging the quality of food products during storage life.

The increasing consumer demands for safe and healthier food products have led to the development of novel packaging technologies including antimicrobial edible food packaging by the researcher and further have been focused on the commercialization by the food industries. However, in order to the delivery of food products with high-quality nature, foodborne microorganisms are one of the major reasons for causing food spoilage in packaged and fresh produces. In this circumstance, the application of antimicrobial packaging (AP) can be one of the solutions to provide safe and quality food products with extended storage life. The AP is a category of active packaging, where the use of nanotechnology in developing antimicrobial edible films and coatings provides a tailor-made way to improve the inherent food properties. The inclusion of nanotechnology in AP delivers tunable quality, safety, and stability of packaged food products. Some of the available edible nanostructured materials such as chitosan and inorganic nanomaterials are an effective way of possessing antimicrobial activity against spoilage and pathogenic food microorganisms. Interestingly, several natural resources based on organic and inorganic antimicrobial agents are available at a commercial level. However, nanoparticles are being developed to obtain better effective antimicrobial edible packaging, which has attained a great interest in recent market trends. Among available, the fabrication of nanocomposites-based edible films and nanocoatings are two most important developments in the area of AP with the aid of nanotechnology. Besides, nanoparticles also provide tunable barrier and mechanical properties to the antimicrobial edible packaging film. However, the effectiveness of antimicrobials depends on the release phenomena from packaging material to the food, wherein nanoparticles provide better controlled release. Moreover, the incorporation of nanoparticles into food packaging material is maintained by several available policies and regulations offered by standard authority bodies at national and international levels. In this regard, the present chapter represents the advancement of nanotechnology in AP via developing active edible packaging with controlled release of antimicrobials and also provides improved shelf life while maintaining the quality and safety.

The edible food packaging, being a kind of eco-friendly packaging, is designed to be eaten and biodegradable in nature similar to the food materials. This packaging technique delivers a synergistic approach for enhanced product life as a preservation practice and further aids in sustainability to the society for reduced food packaging waste. The current chapter puts a focus on addressing the status of edible food packaging in the global market and its trend in research and development in regard to other available packaging materials. The classes of biopolymers and others to be used as a component of edible food packaging include polysaccharides, proteins, lipids and waxes, plasticizers, and additives. The edible food packaging counts on good sustainable packaging as it helps in reducing food waste and also provides sustainability to the world. Some of the focused sectors for food processing include dairy, fruits, and vegetables, grains and cereals, fisheries, meat and poultry, consumer foods, etc. Additionally, the combined approach of using available preservation techniques such as thermal treatments, cold processing, preservatives, water controlling, non-thermal processing with edible food packaging can further improve the food traits. The transportation and exportation of edible food packaged materials can be made easily available using various secondary and tertiary packaging materials. It is noteworthy to mention that the inclusion of nanotechnology in edible food packaging can further provide multifunctional edible packaging materials contributing tunable packaging property, food texture, and to keep food products fresh for a longer duration. Thus, the present chapter further provides a brief overview of the importance of nanotechnology in edible food packaging describing the overview of the present book entitled “Nanotechnology in edible food packaging” and its various aspects for obtaining the tailored-made properties of food products via versatile routes.

The nanostructured materials exhibiting one of the dimensional size ranges of

Nanoencapsulation is a kind of edible-coating approach for bioactive components and is widely used to protect different bioactive compounds including phenolic compounds, essential oils, essential fatty acids, and aroma components, which are beneficial for human health. The encapsulation approach includes entrapping the bioactive components (core material) within carrier materials for improved stability. The carrier or wall materials for developing nanoencapsulates are carbohydrates (dextrans, malto-dextrans, starch, gum aerobic, etc.), proteins (whey protein isolates, etc.), lipids, and emulsifiers, etc. On the other hand, the core materials for the nanoencapsulation fabrication are polyphenols, essential oils, food colorants, minerals, vitamins, and others. However, the nanoencapsulates can be obtained in several forms such as mononuclear, multishell, multicore, and matrix. For the fabrication of nanoencapsulates, the various nanocarrier materials include nanoemulsions, nanogels, nanofibers, nanoliposomes, biopolymeric-based nanoparticles, and others. Additionally, the several fabrication techniques of nanoencapsulation are spray drying, freeze drying, fluidized bed coating, centrifugal extrusion, supercritical fluid method, spray cooling, hot-melt coating, ionic gelation, solvent evaporation method, coacervation, etc. Based on this discussion, the chapter will provide an overview of various aspects of nanoencapsulation in a wide area.

With the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic in late 2019, and the catastrophe faced by the world in 2020, the food industry was one of the most affected industries. On the one hand, the pandemic-induced fear and lockdown in several countries increased the online delivery of food products, resulting in a drastic increase in single-use plastic packaging waste. On the other hand, several reports revealed the spread of the viral infection through food products and packaging. This significantly affected consumer behavior, which directly influenced the market dynamics of the food industry. Still, a complete recovery from this situation seems a while away, and there is a need to focus on a potential solution that can address both of these issues. Several biomaterials that possess antiviral activities, in addition to being natural and biodegradable, are being studied for food packaging applications. However, the research community has been ignorant of this aspect, as the focus has mainly been on antibacterial and antifungal activities for the enhancement of food shelf life. This review aims to cover the different perspectives of antiviral food packaging materials using established technology. It focuses on the basic principles of antiviral activity and its mechanisms. Furthermore, the antiviral activities of several nanomaterials, biopolymers, natural oils and extracts, polyphenolic compounds, etc., are discussed.

This area of study gives the consequence of respiration rate of bhimkol (Musa balbisiana) at different storage temperatures (15–35 °C). The relationship between O₂ step down rate and CO₂ step up rate was ascertained using gas measuring data set collected by enclosing bhimkol in respirometer and measuring head space O₂ and CO₂ concentration over time. A mathematical method was used to predict the influence of storage temperature and time on respiration rate of bhimkol and the best fitted model was subsequently implemented to design modified atmospheric packaging for bhimkol. The experimental data set were used to acquire two different models namely regression function model and enzyme kinetics model and among both the models the enzyme kinetics model was found to be the better fitted model to predict the respiration rate of bhimkol banana. Modified atmospheric packaging reckons the adaptation of gas surroundings within the package by means of normal interchange involving the respiration rate of bhimkol and gas diffusion through the package material. Based on the respiration rate and permeability of the packaging materials, the best suitable packaging films obtained for the modified atmospheric packaging of bhimkol was found to be polypropylene, and polyvinyl chloride film. The explicated model furnishes an efficient technique for selection and design of suitable packaging material for bhimkol banana.

The biodegradable nanocomposite foams can be developed using different fabrication techniques where the use of various kinds of bio-based nanofillers helps in tailoring the foam properties. A brief discussion on different techniques of fabrication, their economic viability, and industrial feasibility in regards to the polymeric foams is made in this chapter. Moreover, the available different biodegradable polymeric foams and their processing in the recent past years is detailed. However, the chapter mainly focuses on the biodegradable poly (lactic acid) (PLA)-based nanocomposite foams and their recent developments and breakthroughs. The addition of nanofillers for fabricating the foam greatly affects various foam properties such as cell size, cell density, and porosity. Other important properties such as thermal properties, mechanical properties, and wettability are also affected by the nanofiller materials. The degradation of PLA-based nanocomposite foams is greatly influenced due to the addition of various bio-based nanofiller materials. In this regard, the tailor-made properties of various biodegradable foams make them promising candidate in different areas of research.

Life cycle assessment (LCA) is a standardized practice to assess the life cycle of a product for regulating the environmental impacts of a product life. LCA is a significant entity to maintain the quality and ecological integrity for determining the optimal product and processes in terms of their novel growths. The chapter aims to discuss the LCA of chitosan-based materials with strategies to control the impacts on environment. Chitosan is the second most abundantly available polysaccharides, which are widely used for its biodegradable, biocompatible, non-toxic, and antimicrobial nature and several other properties. The deacetylation of chitin yields chitosan, which can be tailored in different forms and geometry to achieve an extensive demand in the form of powders, films, tablets, particles, composites, etc. Further, the development of chitosan-based active materials having enormous properties can potentially replace the fossil-based materials for stringent food packaging applications, tissue engineering, drug delivery, therapeutics, adhesives, etc. The presence of functional groups such as primary amine and primary and secondary hydroxyl groups in chitosan provides an opportunity for regulating its properties in terms of formulating functional agents. In addition, chitosan can form cross-links and multi-networks through the presence of functional groups, pH, electro response, etc., which may be desired for developing materials with tuned properties. In this context, an understanding regarding the environmental impact of chitosan during its whole life cycle is needed. In this chapter, the discussion on LCA of chitosan and related approaches from available resources for tailor-made properties is made including various design parameters, environmental impacts, product formulation steps, use of different agents, and so on. Additionally, the chapter presents the importance of chitosan in day-to-day life along with its environmental impact for various applications such as food packaging films, edible coatings, flocculants, adhesives, and others.

The chapter discusses the use of several sustainable nanostructured materials extracted from carbohydrate, and protein based sources for their potential use in edible food packaging. The development of natural biopolymer based edible food packaging materials incorporated with nanostructured materials such as nanocellulose, nanochitosan, nanostarch, and others are gaining significant importance in preserving food products. The edible coating/films for food products such as fruits and vegetables, meat and meat products, cut fruits provide several advantages over other available post-harvest techniques including reduced plastic based waste, improved retention of color, texture, nutrients content of food products, etc. Further, the inclusion of bioactive components with the polymer based matrix as edible coating/film application provides added advantages such as antioxidant, antidiabetic, anticholesteremic, antihypertensive, etc. In line to this, a wide range of natural bioactive agents such as Aloe vera, curcumin, sandalwood oil, clove oil, honey, etc. are added to edible food packaging materials for their noteworthy health beneficial properties. In this regards, the nanostructured sustainable materials facilitated by bioactive agents can significantly improve the shelf life of perishable food products including fruits and vegetables, sea based products, meat and meat based products, milk products, etc.

The present work demonstrates the formulation of cellulose nanofiber (CNF) or magnetic cellulose nanofiber (mgCNF) dispersed chitosan-based edible nanocoating with superior mechanical, thermal, optical, and texture properties. The fabrication of mgCNF is successfully achieved through a single-step coprecipitation route, where iron particles get adsorbed onto CNF. The thermal stability of mgCNF is improved considerably, where ∼17% reduction in weight is observed, whereas CNF degrades completely under identical conditions. TGA analysis shows that there is an improvement in thermal stability for both CNF- and mgCNF-reinforced CS nanocoatings, where mgCNF provides more heat dimensional stability than CNF-dispersed CS nanocoatings. Further, the edible nanocoatings are stable even at the temperature of heat treatment such as food sterilization. The mechanical property of the mgCNF-dispersed chitosan (CS) shows a remarkable improvement in tensile strength (57.86 ± 14 MPa) and Young's modulus (2348.52 ± 276 MPa) in comparison to neat CS (6.27 ± 0.7 and 462.36 ± 64 MPa, respectively). To determine the developed materials to be safe for food, the quantification of iron is made by using ICP-MS technique. It is worth mentioning that mgCNF-coated CS helps in improving the texture of cut pineapples in comparison with uncoated pineapple slices under ambient conditions.

The current research investigates the development of curcumin (Cur) loaded chitosan (CS)/iron functionalized cellulose nanofibers (mgCNF) based edible coating for perishable cut fruit, which is a non-toxic eatable packaging with improved anti-cancer, physicochemical, thermal, and food properties. The modification in cellulose nanofibres (CNF) through fabricating mgCNF improved the surface properties of Cur loaded CS materials (suggested by FESEM). Further, the weight percentage of various elements such as carbon, oxygen, iron, and nitrogen was found to be as 54.4, 38.4, 5.2, and 1.9 % (w/w), respectively, in the developed Cur loaded CS/mgCNF (1.5 % (w/w)) based materials (obtained by EDX analysis). Interestingly, the work provides value addition to the perishable cut pineapple fruit in form of eatable packaging materials with the iron content of ∼3.6 ppm, which is within permissible limit according to WHO guidelines. It is worth mentioning that the presence of Cur with CS based biocomposites exhibited anti-cancer activity by disrupting the cell membrane of HeLa (cervical cancer) cells with cell viability of ∼17 % and ∼98 % for CS/mgCNF (1.5 % (w/w)) with and without Cur, respectively. The thermal properties in terms of onset degradation temperatures (10 % weight reduction) for Cur loaded CS, CS/CNF (1 % (w/w)) and CS/mgCNF (1 % (w/w)) were 78.6, 90.8, and 82.3 °C, respectively, which provides an additional approach to use these materials for heat unstable food items. Therefore, the present investigation provides a novel approach towards supplementing the iron functionalized food products with anti-cancer activity and improved performance to reduce food waste.

The current research addresses the fabrication of poly (lactic acid) (PLA)/silk nanocrystal (SNC) biocomposite based highly porous, lightweight, and interconnected microcellular foam using a simple and cost-effective approach. The nanofiller SNC was fabricated from muga cocoons following degumming and acid hydrolysis methods. In the developed biocomposite foam, SNC as a nanofiller helps to improve the crystallinity of PLA, where, SNC acts as a nucleating agent and further helps to generate smaller pores in the matrix improving the foam properties. Additionally, the cell size of SNC (at 3% loading) incorporated PLA microcellular foams decreases up to ∼60 % compared to neat PLA (nPLA) foam. The density of the biocomposite foam is observed to be reduced effectively by ∼85 % in comparison to nPLA. In case of thermal property, PLA/SNC based foams have effective thermal stability up to ∼250 °C, whereas nPLA foams are thermally stable upto ∼200 °C. Interestingly, SNC as biofiller also offers improved thermo-mechanical properties to foams, which are desirable for advanced engineering applications. Further, the improved hydrophobicity of PLA/SNC based foams may be obtained due to the combined effect of surface texture, nanofillers and porogen materials. Based on this study, the fabricated PLA/SNC based foams are considered as a potential candidate in biomedical, packaging, and several versatile areas for the mentioned noteworthy attributes.