Environment-Friendly Biopolymers for Food Packaging: Starch, Protein, and Poly-lactic Acid (PLA)

Currently, petroleum-based plastics are widely used for food packaging in all over the world. Due to their environmental pollution problems, most of the researchers are interested to replace the petroleum-based plastics with environment-friendly biodegradable polymers for packaging materials, in which biodegradable packaging materials based on starch, protein, and poly-lactic acid (PLA) have been produced for packaging of food and medicine. However, these materials are weaker than petroleum-based plastics in using as packaging materials. In order to produce strong packaging materials, these bio-based materials are composed of biopolymers and synthetic polymers. They are already commercialized mainly for single-use disposal packaging applications such as bottles, cold drink cups, thermoformed trays and lid containers, blister packages, overwrap as well as flexible films. Therefore, this chapter focuses on production of starch, protein, and PLA; production and characterization of composite materials based on starch, protein, and/or PLA; preparation of packaging materials using composite materials based on starch, protein, and/or PLA; advantage and disadvantage of these packaging materials used in food packaging; commercial usage of packaging materials; and environmental impact of these packaging materials.