New-style packaging helps preserve food better than plastic wrap

Preserving food by using sealed plastic film is very popular now. Did you know, most of today's food wrap films are made of plastic. They are at risk of releasing toxic chemicals into food. Plus, just isolating food with oxygen is not enough to preserve them for a long time.

A 3-year study conducted by National University of Singapore was able to completely solve these problems. Scientists create a new type of food packaging, made from shrimp shells and crustaceans. Materials of natural origin also increase the shelf life of preserved food by 3 times.

Preserving food by encapsulating plastic film is very popular.

The main ingredient of the new film is a polymer called "chitosan". They are present in the skeleton of crustaceans. According to scientists, this is the ideal material for use in the food industry. Like plastic, chitosan offers excellent thin film formation. Not only that, it can also biodegrade quickly, which nylon takes millions of years to process.

Most importantly, this new polymer is not toxic. The use of chemical plastic materials to make food wrap has been constantly changing since its inception. The reason is that regardless of a plastic, we will find their health and environmental hazards, from PVC to LDPE.

Besides, the new food wrap film is also resistant to bacteria and fungi. The researchers added the structure of the polymer to GFSE extracts from pomelo harm. This is a good antioxidant and possesses the ability to sterilize, fight bacteria and kill fungi.

The natural origin of GFSE is superior to that of silver ions used for similar purposes in some types of plastic wrap.

Many studies prove, accumulating large amounts of silver ions can be harmful to health.

"More and more people are interested in the development of food packaging materials ," said associate professor Thian Eng San, who led the project. "They are also demanding that food packaging materials must be of natural origin, environmentally friendly, can biodegrade and increase storage time".

Associate Professor Thian Eng San (left) and researcher Tan Yi Min (right) of the same type of polymer membrane they are studying.

The film that Thian developed completely meets those requirements. In the experiment, bread samples packed with new polymer membranes were three times longer than conventional plastic films. Mold grows on bread after 10 days, instead of just 3 days with plastic wrap.

The next step of the study, Thian wanted to optimize this coating with perishable foods. He wanted to control more closely the development of microorganisms. After that, Thian could consider commercializing his products for 3 to 5 years.

Not only is it a new way to earn money, chitosan-based food wrap and GFSE also create many other positive effects. "Extending the lifespan of food also means reducing food waste. The result is a reduction in global food losses , " said Tan Yi Min, another researcher in the group. "This will bring both economic and environmental benefits."