Standard and new processing techniques used in the preparation of films and coatings at the lab level and scale-up

Abstract

Ongoing research on biodegradable/edible lms is being made, and there is a great interest to make this knowledge more widely available and used. In the last 30 years, considerable progress has been made in developing these materials driven by the increasing consumer demand for safe, high-quality, convenient food with long shelf lives, along with an ecological awareness of the limited natural resources and the environmental impact of packaging waste (Janjarasskul and Krochta 2010; Kester and Fennema 1986). Nevertheless, the use of edible lms or coatings to extend storage life of food is an ancient human practice of food preservation. Some examples of those old practices are fruit waxing used since the twelfth century in China, meat larding used in England since the sixteenth century (Kester and Fennema 1986), and the production of soy lms from soy milk (yuba) traditionally employed in the Orient to wrap and shape ground meats or vegetables (Gennadios and Weller 1991).