Biopolymer-based solutions for enhanced safety and quality assurance: A review

The improper disposal of petroleum-based plastics has been associated with detrimental environmental consequences, such as the proliferation of microplastic pollution and increased emissions of greenhouse gases (GHGs). Consequently, biopolymers have emerged as a highly regarded alternative due to their environmental-friendly attributes and versatile range of applications. In response to consumer demands for safer food options, sustainable packaging, and escalating environmental concerns, the food sector is increasingly adopting biopolymers. Further, in the recent decade, the usage of active or functional biopolymers has evolved into smart biopolymers that can transmit real-time data to consumers. This review covers key topics such as antimicrobial and biodegradable packaging, edible coatings and films, incorporation of scavengers and bioactive substances that prolong the shelf life and guard against moisture and microbial contamination. The paper also discusses the development of edible cutlery as a sustainable substitute for plastic, the encapsulation of bioactive substances within biopolymers, 3-D food printing for regulated nutrition delivery and thickening and gelling agents that improve food texture and stability. It also discusses the integration of smart polymer functions, demonstrating their importance in guaranteeing food safety and quality, such as biosensing, pH and gas detection, antibacterial characteristics, and time-temperature monitoring. By shedding light on market trends, future scope, and potentialities, this review aims to elucidate the prospects of utilizing biopolymers to address sustainability and quality concerns within the food industry effectively.

Enhancing mechanical and water barrier properties of starch film using chia mucilage

Biodegradable packaging materials are increasingly being investigated due to rising concerns about food safety and environmental conservation. This study examines the incorporation of chia mucilage (CM) into starch-based films using the casting method, aiming to understand its effects on the structure and functionality of the films. CM, an anionic heteropolysaccharide, is hypothesized to enhance the mechanical and barrier properties of the films through polymer interactions and hydrogen bonding. Our findings confirm that CM incorporation results in films with uniformly smooth surfaces, indicating high compatibility and homogeneity within the starch matrix. Notably, CM improves film transparency and crystallinity. Mechanical assessments show a remarkable elevation in tensile strength, soaring from 5.21 MPa to 12.38 MPa, while elongation at break decreases from 61.73 % to 31.42 %, indicating a trade-off between strength and flexibility. Additionally, water solubility decreases from 57.97 % to 41.40 %, and water vapor permeability is reduced by 30 % with CM loading. These results highlight the role of CM in facilitating the formation of a dense, interconnected polymeric network within the starch matrix. Given the soluble dietary fiber nature of CM, the CS/CM (corn starch/chia mucilage) blended films are expected to be safe for food packaging and applicable as edible films with health benefits.

Biodegradable composite films based on mucilage from Opuntia ficus-indica (Cactaceae): Microstructural, functional and thermal properties

This study evaluated the feasibility of using cactus mucilage (CM) to elaborate biobased composite films blended with styrene-butadiene rubber latex (SBL). The CM was extracted and precipitated with ethanol (CMET) and isopropanol (CMIS). Mucilage-based films were formulated using three levels of mucilage (4, 6, and 8 wt%). The microstructure, thickness, moisture content, density, water contact angle, water vapor permeability, film solubility, thermal stability, and toughness of mucilage films blended with SBL (SBL/CMET and SBL/CMIS) were measured. The properties of mucilage-based films varied systematically, depending on the concentration of mucilage. The addition of SBL to CM film produces compatible, hydrophobic, flexible, and stiffer films with low moisture contents and good barrier properties. The mucilage film incorporated with 6 wt% CMET and CMIS reached the highest Young's modulus of 1512 ± 21 and 1988 ± 55 MPa, respectively. The DSC of produced films reveals that the Tg of SBL/CMIS is lower than that of SBL/CMIS. The synthesized films were structurally stable at high temperatures. The biodegradability of the composite films buried in the ground shows that the produced films are 100 % biodegradable after 40 days. Thus, CM blended with SBL can benefit specific applications, especially food packaging.

Chia mucilage carrier systems: A review of emulsion, encapsulation, and coating and film strategies

The use of carrier systems for the protection and delivery of bioactive compounds in the agri-food industry is an area of opportunity that requires the design of new systems and sources of materials for their structure. Chia seeds (Salvia hispanica L.) produce mucilage with functional qualities that allow their application in diverse areas of the food industry. These qualities have been used to form very stable carrier systems, such as capsules, emulsions, coatings, and films that can protect and prolong the functionalities of loaded compounds (e.g., antimicrobial and antioxidant capabilities). This paper presents a review of chia mucilage-based carrier systems and their applications in food products (micro-and nanoparticles, emulsions, coatings, and films for food packaging), as well as the current technological prospects of these systems. The use of chia mucilage in coatings and films shows a high potential for use in biodegradable, edible, and organic packaging. Although many studies have been conducted on chia mucilage encapsulation systems, there is still a gap in the application of capsules and particles in food.

Selected plants producing mucilage: Overview, composition, and their potential as functional ingredients in the development of plant-based foods

The increase in the preference for vegan and vegetarian diets is directly related to changing eating habits and the need for plant-based alternatives to animal-based products, which are better for health, due to the high content of essential amino acids and lipid profile rich in polyunsaturated fatty acids, and have lower environmental impacts. In this scenario, there is a growing demand for plant-based foods, making it necessary to find new plant-based ingredients for application in foods and beverages. Flaxseed, chia seed, and Barbados gooseberry contain mucilage, a component with potential application in plant-based products. These hydrocolloids can be used as gelling agents, texture modifiers, stabilizers, and emulsifiers in solid and semi-solid foods. This review presents the extraction, characterization, and application of flaxseed, chia seed, and Barbados gooseberry mucilage for use in plant-based foods. It was found that mucilage composition varies due to the extraction method used, extraction conditions, and geographic location of the seed or leaf. However, applications in plant-based foods are currently limited, mainly focused on applying chia mucilage in bakery products and packaging. Research on applying flaxseed and Barbados gooseberry mucilage to plant-based products is limited, though it has been shown to have potential applications in packaging. Mucilage may also increase the nutritional profile of the product and provide better technological, functional, and sensory characteristics. Therefore, because of mucilage's excellent functional and technological properties, it is a promising candidate to act as an ingredient in plant-based food products.

Novel constituents of Salvia hispanica L. (chia) nutlet mucilage and the improved in vitro fermentation of nutlets when ground

Upon wetting, chia (Salvia hispanica L.) nutlets produce a gel-like capsule of polysaccharides called mucilage that comprises a significant part of their dietary fibre content. Seed/nutlet mucilage is often used as a texture modifying hydrocolloid and bulking dietary fibre due to its water-binding ability, though the utility of mucilage from different sources is highly structure-function dependent. The composition and structure of chia nutlet mucilage is poorly defined, and a better understanding will aid in exploiting its dietary fibre functionality, particularly if, and how, it is utilised by gut microbiota. In this study, microscopy, chromatography, mass spectrometry and glycome profiling techniques showed that chia nutlet mucilage is highly complex, layered, and contains several polymer types. The mucilage comprises a novel xyloamylose containing both β-linked-xylose and α-linked-glucose, a near-linear xylan that may be sparsely substituted, a modified cellulose domain, and abundant alcohol-soluble oligosaccharides. To assess the dietary fibre functionality of chia nutlet mucilage, an in vitro cumulative gas production technique was used to determine the fermentability of different chia nutlet preparations. The complex nature of chia nutlet mucilage led to poor fermentation where the oligosaccharides appeared to be the only fermentable substrate present in the mucilage. Of note, ground chia nutlets were better fermented than intact whole nutlets, as judged by short chain fatty acid production. Therefore, it is suggested that the benefits of eating chia as a "superfood", could be notably enhanced if the nutlets are ground rather than being consumed whole, improving the bioaccessibility of key nutrients including dietary fibre.

Prasanna S, Vishwanath YC, G. Reddi S, Halli HM, Boraiah KM, Basavaraj PS, Mahmoud EA, Casini R, Elansary HO. Promising Bioregulators for Higher Water Productivity and Oil Quality of Chia under Deficit Irrigation in Semiarid Regions

Appropriate water management practices are essential for the successful cultivation of chia in water-scarce situations of semiarid regions. This is highly essential when new crops such as chia are introduced for ensuring diversity and water saving. Therefore, field trials (2020-21 and 2021-22) were conducted to understand the impact of deficit irrigation and bioregulators (BRs) on the seed yield, water productivity, and oil quality of chia. The effect of foliar application of BRs such as thiourea (TU; 400 ppm), salicylic acid (SA; 1.0 mM), potassium nitrate (KN; 0.15%), potassium silicate (KS; 100 ppm), kaolin (KO; 5%), and sodium benzoate (SB; 200 ppm) were monitored at different levels of irrigation: 100 (I₁₀₀), 75 (I₇₅), 50 (I₅₀), and 25 (I₂₅) percent of cumulative pan evaporation (CPE). Deficit irrigation at I₂₅, I₅₀, and I₇₅ led to 55.3, 20.1, and 3.3% reductions in seed yield; 42.5, 22.5, and 4.2% in oil yield; and 58.9, 24.5, and 5.7% in omega-3 yield, respectively, relative to I₁₀₀. Bioregulators could reduce the adverse impact of water deficit stress on seed, oil, and omega-3 yield. However, their beneficial effect was more conspicuous under mild water stress (I₇₅), as revealed by higher seed yield (4.3-6.9%), oil yield (4.4-7.1%), and omega-3 yield (4.7-8.5%) over control (I₁₀₀ + no BRs). Further, BRs (KN, TU, and SA) maintained oil quality in terms of linolenic acid and polyunsaturated fatty acid contents, even under mild stress (I₇₅). Foliar application of KN, TU, and SA could save water to an extent of 36-40%. Therefore, the adverse impact of deficit irrigation on seed, oil, and omega-3 yields of chia could be minimized using BRs such as KN, TU, and SA, which can also contribute to improved water productivity.

Design and Practical Considerations for Active Polymeric Films in Food Packaging

Polymeric films for active food packaging have been playing an important role in food preservation due to favorable properties including high structural flexibility and high property tunability. Over the years, different polymeric active packaging films have been developed. Many of them have found real applications in food production. This article reviews, using a practical perspective, the principles of designing polymeric active packaging films. Different factors to be considered during materials selection and film generation are delineated. Practical considerations for the use of the generated polymeric films in active food packaging are also discussed. It is hoped that this article cannot only present a snapshot of latest advances in the design and optimization of polymeric active food packaging films, but insights into film development to achieve more effective active food packaging can be attained for future research.

Shelf Life of Fresh Sliced Sea Bream Pack in PET Nanocomposite Trays

Spoilage of fish due to microbiological activity is one of the biggest problems found by producers to take fresh fish products to customers. It is necessary packaging improvements to be able to increase fish shelf life and, thus, be able to travel further and to keep product freshness longer at customer's houses. In the present work, a new material is developed for fish packaging in modified atmosphere (MAP). This material is poly(ethylene terephathalate) (PET) extruded with a polyamide (PA) nanocomposite containing nanosepiolite. Here, it is shown the production procedure from laboratory to industrial scale. Permeability to oxygen and impact mechanical properties results are shown for different samples, both at laboratory and industrial processes. At the end, a material composition is chosen to produce the finale tray which will contain the sliced sea bream. Microbiological analysis is done over the packed fish, resulting is a lower microbiological count compared to a PET control sample. This means that shelf life of pack sea bream could increase from 2-4 to 7-9 days, which is very important for both producers and customers. On the other hand, trays obtained comply with European regulations in food contact materials (FCM) and, overall, they are suitable for food packaging materials.

Use of Chia by-Products Obtained from the Extraction of Seeds Oil for the Development of New Biodegradable Films for the Agri-Food Industry

Chia oil production and consumption have increased in recent years, producing a large number of by-products that had low utility or economic value for the industry. In this study, a biodegradable film was successfully prepared from mucilage extracted from defatted chia flour. The physical-chemical, optical, water vapor permeability (WVP), and mechanical properties of films made with two different types of chia matrixes (defatted flour and whole seeds) were determined. In general, defatted chia flour films exhibited a slightly reddish and yellowish color but still transparent in appearance, were good visible light barriers, and had better mechanical properties than films made with whole seeds. They also have greater WVP values than synthetic films such as low-density polyethylene. The results of the present study demonstrated that defatted chia flour can be used in producing edible films with improved quality characteristics.