Food Preservation Packaging

The most important role of food packaging is to provide a total barrier to physical, biological and/or chemical factors that can tender the quality integrity of the packaged food, an ideal food packaging should be rigid and non-reactive to the food enclosed. That is, a packaging material should be safe by and/or for the food. Food and packaging may interact and pose effects, which may affect the quality, integrity and shelf life of the food. This chapter discusses the processes of food packaging interaction such as permeation, migration, sorption and their adverse effects on the food packaging system. Novel packaging systems such as Active packaging (packaging that preserve, communicate and protect quality integrity of the food), Intelligent packaging (packages with improved communication models that help consumers ascertain the quality and the state of the food) and Bio-active packaging (are active packaging with improve compound in them that support stability of the food) were discussed as advanced packaging systems that help in mitigating the food-package interaction as well as give consumer conveniences while extending shelf stability. Scientific models used in studying the extent of food packaging interaction are also discussed which includes the stochastic, mathematical and simulation models.