TY - JOUR
AU1 - Guo, Yufang
AB - research highlights FOOD TECHNOLOGY Food Hydrocolloids https://doi.org/gspx (2021) Food packaging plays an important role in protecting food products and preserves their nutritional value. Recently, smart packaging containing an indicator to quickly inform consumers about the food quality status has generated much interest in the food industry. Curcuma oil has been used as a natural indicator in smart packaging systems because of its antimicrobial and antioxidant properties, and because it contains the pH-sensitive yellow pigment curcumin. However, the previously reported curcuma-oil immobilized packaging films based on chitosan have disadvantages, including a low ultraviolet light barrier and limited mechanical properties. Thus, new materials, such as nanocrystals or nanofibres from cellulose or chitin, have been explored as reinforcing agents for smart food packaging. Rut Fernández-Marín from the University of the Basque Country UPV/EHU in Spain and colleagues have developed a pH-sensitive intelligent film by adding curcuma oil and anthocyanin extracts to a chitosan matrix reinforced with alpha-chitin nanocrystals. The incorporation of nanocrystals enhanced the mechanical properties and hydrophobicity of the films and improved the ultraviolet light barrier, and the mixture of curcuma oil and anthocyanin extract enhanced the antioxidant activity of the final nanocomposite films. The films were sensitive to colour change 
TI - Smart food packaging films
JF - Nature Food
DO - 10.1038/s43016-021-00375-w
DA - 2021-09-01
UR - https://www.deepdyve.com/lp/springer-journals/smart-food-packaging-films-7GNKeHMw2N
SP - 641
EP - 641
VL - 2
IS - 9
DP - DeepDyve
ER -