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Foods
Special Issues
Emerging Trends in Greener, Safer, and More Sustainable Food Packaging
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Emerging Trends in Greener, Safer, and More Sustainable Food Packaging

A special issue of Foods (ISSN 2304-8158). This special issue belongs to the section "Food Packaging and Preservation".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 30 June 2026 | Viewed by 5188

Special Issue Editors

Prof. Dr. Nathdanai Harnkarnsujarit

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Packaging and Materials Technology, Faculty of Agro-Industry, Kasetsart University, 50 Ngam Wong Wan Rd., Latyao, Chatuchak, Bangkok 10900, Thailand
Interests: biodegradable; food packaging; active packaging; edible film; thermoplastic starch
Prof. Dr. Yoshio Makino

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Life Culture, Kagawa Junior College, Kagawa 769-0201, Japan
Interests: computational chemistry; food science; food chemistry; cheminformatics and computational chemistry; analytical chemistry; packaging; metabolomics; machine learning
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Food packaging plays a crucial role in the food production and distribution chain. In recent years, the food industry has witnessed a growing emphasis on greener, safer, and more sustainable packaging solutions. Technological advancements have enabled enhanced food preservation without compromising safety, thereby extending shelf-life and maintaining product quality. Sustainability-driven innovations include the use of renewable resources, biopolymers, and optimized packaging designs to minimize material consumption. Additionally, the increasing demand for transparency through clear labeling and certification has strengthened consumer trust in eco-friendly alternatives. Collectively, these trends not only align with global sustainability goals but also pave the way for a future in which food packaging contributes positively to both human health and environmental protection. For this Special Issue, we invite authors to submit original review/research articles presenting novel ideas, materials, technologies, or strategies related to sustainable food packaging, with a focus on environmental and safety considerations.

Prof. Dr. Nathdanai Harnkarnsujarit
Prof. Dr. Yoshio Makino
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 250 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for assessment.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Foods is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2900 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • food packaging
  • biopolymers
  • coatings
  • packaging sustainability
  • active packaging
  • intelligent packaging

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Published Papers (4 papers)

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Research

18 pages, 6085 KB  
Article
Influence of Organic Salts on Molecular Interactions, Film Performance, and Antimicrobial Activity of TPS/PBAT Blown Films
by Vannet Roschhuk, Phanwipa Wongphan, Yeyen Laorenza, Phatthranit Klinmalai and Nathdanai Harnkarnsujarit
Foods 2026, 15(7), 1148; https://doi.org/10.3390/foods15071148 - 27 Mar 2026
Viewed by 486
Abstract
This study investigates the effects of organic salts, including sodium citrate (SC), calcium citrate (CC), and calcium lactate (CL), on the structure–property–function relationships of thermoplastic starch/poly(butylene adipate-co-terephthalate) (TPS/PBAT) films for active packaging applications. TPS incorporated with organic salts was prepared via twin-screw extrusion, [...] Read more.
This study investigates the effects of organic salts, including sodium citrate (SC), calcium citrate (CC), and calcium lactate (CL), on the structure–property–function relationships of thermoplastic starch/poly(butylene adipate-co-terephthalate) (TPS/PBAT) films for active packaging applications. TPS incorporated with organic salts was prepared via twin-screw extrusion, blended with PBAT, and further processed into blown films. The films were systematically characterized using 1H NMR, FTIR, and SEM, together with optical, mechanical, water vapor permeability, and antimicrobial evaluations against Staphylococcus aureus. The results revealed that SC primarily modulated hydrogen-bonding interactions within the starch matrix, resulting in improved structural homogeneity, balanced mechanical properties, and the highest antimicrobial activity among all formulations. In contrast, CL and CC promoted ionic crosslinking through Ca2+–starch interactions, leading to increased stiffness and Young’s modulus but reduced polymer chain mobility and limited release of active species, particularly in CC-containing systems. These differences in molecular interactions were consistent with variations in film microstructure, where SC-containing films exhibited more uniform morphologies, while calcium-based systems showed denser but less permeable structures. Furthermore, films containing SC and CL at appropriate concentrations achieved a favorable balance between transparency, water vapor barrier properties, and antimicrobial performance. Overall, this study provides new mechanistic insights into how monovalent and divalent organic salts govern intermolecular interactions, microstructure, and functional performance in TPS/PBAT systems. The findings highlight the critical role of additive type and concentration in designing biodegradable active packaging materials with tunable mechanical, barrier, and antimicrobial properties. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Emerging Trends in Greener, Safer, and More Sustainable Food Packaging)
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20 pages, 5606 KB  
Article
Active TPS/PBAT Blown Films Incorporating Sodium Lactate for Improved Oxygen Barrier, Antimicrobial Activity, and Cheese Preservation
by Vannet Roschhuk, Yeyen Laorenza, Phatthranit Klinmalai and Nathdanai Harnkarnsujarit
Foods 2026, 15(4), 763; https://doi.org/10.3390/foods15040763 - 19 Feb 2026
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 781
Abstract
Biodegradable active packaging that incorporates food-grade additives offers a promising solution for extending shelf life and minimizing food waste. This study investigates the development of functional packaging films for cheese applications by blending thermoplastic starch (TPS) and poly (butylene adipate-co-terephthalate) (PBAT) in a [...] Read more.
Biodegradable active packaging that incorporates food-grade additives offers a promising solution for extending shelf life and minimizing food waste. This study investigates the development of functional packaging films for cheese applications by blending thermoplastic starch (TPS) and poly (butylene adipate-co-terephthalate) (PBAT) in a 60/40 (w/w) ratio with various concentrations of sodium lactate (SL; 1–7% w/w) using blown-film extrusion. Spectroscopic analyses, including 1H NMR and FTIR, confirmed the presence of hydrogen-bonding and ionic interactions between the hydroxyl (–OH) groups of thermoplastic starch (TPS) and the carboxylate (–COO−) groups of sodium lactate, which enhanced interfacial compatibility and produced smoother, more compact film morphologies. SL acted as a multifunctional plasticizer and compatibilizer, improving film flexibility while slightly reducing tensile strength. Notably, SL incorporation increased water vapor permeability and surface wettability but significantly decreased oxygen permeability to below 1 cc·mm/m2·day·atm. At moderate concentrations (≥ 3% w/w), SL also exhibited antimicrobial activity against Staphylococcus aureus. When applied to cheese packaging, SL-modified films effectively maintained color stability for up to 9 days under refrigerated storage. Notably, cheeses packaged with films containing 3–7% (w/w) SL exhibited significantly lower hardness values than the control on day 3, indicating improved moisture retention and texture preservation, although these differences were no longer significant by day 9. These findings demonstrate that sodium lactate can simultaneously enhance interfacial miscibility, oxygen barrier performance, and antimicrobial functionality in sustainable, biodegradable active packaging systems. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Emerging Trends in Greener, Safer, and More Sustainable Food Packaging)
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20 pages, 5760 KB  
Article
Evaluation of Buriti (Mauritia flexuosa L.) Oil as an Additive for Carbohydrate-Based Biodegradable Films
by Bárbara L. S. Freitas, Noemi P. Almeida, Felipe F. Haddad, Leandro S. Oliveira and Adriana S. Franca
Foods 2025, 14(24), 4330; https://doi.org/10.3390/foods14244330 - 16 Dec 2025
Viewed by 860
Abstract
Recent studies have focused on the development of food packaging films based on biopolymers, with polysaccharides being at the forefront due to their abundant availability in food and agricultural by-products. Therefore, it was the aim of this work to prepare and characterize conjugated [...] Read more.
Recent studies have focused on the development of food packaging films based on biopolymers, with polysaccharides being at the forefront due to their abundant availability in food and agricultural by-products. Therefore, it was the aim of this work to prepare and characterize conjugated biopolymeric films using starch, galactomannans and buriti oil (BO), with the latter acting as a partial or integral replacement for glycerol as a plasticizer. The addition of BO to either the starch or the conjugated starch–galactomannan film formulations led to distinct interactions between the components and consequently to films with distinct properties. The addition of both BO and galactomannan to starch hindered retrogradation, characterized by a diminished degree of crystallinity in comparison to the film containing only starch, attesting the stabilization of the starch molecular structures in its interaction with galactomannan molecules and with the emulsified BO. The analyses of films’ mechanical properties demonstrated that the added BO did not act as a plasticizer, leading to increased tensile strength and elastic modulus and decreased elongation at break in all formulations. Overall, the films containing starch presented lower mechanical resistance than the ones based on galactomannan. All formulations led to biodegradable films, with those with BO taking longer to degrade. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Emerging Trends in Greener, Safer, and More Sustainable Food Packaging)
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17 pages, 5470 KB  
Article
Pregelatinized Starch-Based Edible Films as Effective Carriers for Bacillus coagulans: Influence of Starch Type on Film Properties and Probiotic Viability
by Laily Dwi Rahma, Atcharawan Srisa, Phanwipa Wongphan, Massalin Nakphaichit, Shyam S. Sablani and Nathdanai Harnkarnsujarit
Foods 2025, 14(14), 2424; https://doi.org/10.3390/foods14142424 - 9 Jul 2025
Cited by 6 | Viewed by 2476
Abstract
Incorporating probiotics into edible films offers an effective strategy for delivering viable microorganisms to the body. This study aimed to develop edible films based on three types of pregelatinized cassava starch—pregelatinized native starch (PNS), hydroxypropyl distarch phosphate (HDP), and hydroxypropyl starch (HS)—as carriers [...] Read more.
Incorporating probiotics into edible films offers an effective strategy for delivering viable microorganisms to the body. This study aimed to develop edible films based on three types of pregelatinized cassava starch—pregelatinized native starch (PNS), hydroxypropyl distarch phosphate (HDP), and hydroxypropyl starch (HS)—as carriers for Bacillus coagulans (BC). The interactions between probiotic powder and the polymer matrix, as well as the viability of B. coagulans during film drying and subsequent storage, were evaluated to assess the effectiveness of the films as protective delivery systems at room temperature (25 °C). The addition of BC altered the amorphous-to-ordered structure of the starch matrices. Surface morphology analysis showed BC aggregates on PNS films, whereas HDP and HS films retained smooth surfaces. Incorporation of BC increased the tensile strength and Young’s modulus of PNS films but reduced their elongation at break. Additionally, BC decreased both the light transmittance and water contact angle in PNS films, while 1% BC increased the contact angle in HDP and HS films. BC had no significant effect on the solubility of PNS films but enhanced the solubility of HDP and HS films. Notably, B. coagulans maintained viability around 8 log CFU/g after 90 days of storage at room temperature, supporting the potential of pregelatinized starch-based films as effective probiotic carriers. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Emerging Trends in Greener, Safer, and More Sustainable Food Packaging)
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