Multilayer plastic packaging films are commonly used to pack sensitive food products. Their share on the packaging market is increasing as they enable light-weighting and increase resource efficiency in their primary use in comparison to rigid packaging, but they are currently not recyclable. Indeed, high purity fractions are needed for reprocessing and the vast majority of them end up in landfill or in energy recovery systems. In addition, most of the barrier materials such as Ethylene Vinyl Alcohol (EVOH) or polyamides (PA), are fossil-based.

To this end, new solutions for product packaging are needed. The results obtained in DAFIA project have demonstrated that bio-macromolecules from marine sub-products has a great potential to be used as high added value active barrier coating for multilayer packaging or edible coatings directly applied to food.

Echoing the increasingly stringent legislation and public demands, the packaging industry is requesting more sustainable barrier solutions. This is boosting the research in renewably sourced materials which in turn also have the ability to support the circular economy transition by enabling improved organic or materials recycling routes.

You can read the whole article ‘Emerging Circular Biobased Barrier solutions’ written by Elodie Bugnicourt and Simona Neri in Bioplastics Magazine, Vol 05, p44-46, September-October 2019, in the following LINK.