Agro-Wastes for Packaging Applications

Food and agricultural waste is a huge global issue that has detrimental effects on society, the economy, and the environment. Plant leaves, stems, roots and peels (outer leaves and stems) are among the wastes and by-products from agriculture and the food business, along with residues from oil production, fruit and vegetable peels, and seeds. High concentrations of dietary fiber, phytochemicals, cellulose, and hemicellulose are typically found in these residues. As the next environmentally conscious step of waste valorization, research from recent years has demonstrated that employing organic ingredients/biodegradable fibers generated from waste and by-products in the food packaging business may be an efficient strategy to reduce the quantity of food waste and by-products. In recent years, there has been a lot of interest in finding alternative polymer materials as high-value novel packaging materials through the valorization of agricultural waste. Thus, utilizing agricultural wastes and by-products as raw materials for food packaging could help cut down on the amount of waste produced.

Agro-Wastes for Packaging Applications provides an update on the strategies for valuing agricultural waste and how these might be used in packaging. It also includes recent research on these approaches and presents an innovative strategy for developing sustainable, green, and biodegradable packaging options. A detailed overview of the packaging application of valorized agricultural waste materials is discussed, and concept clarification is achieved using flowcharts and figures supported by the latest research investigations. These agricultural leftovers are abundant sources of polysaccharides, such as cellulose, hemicellulose, and lignin, which can be processed further utilizing various physicochemical techniques and other unconventional techniques to create nanocellulose fibers or crystals. The main goal of this book is to provide food experts and the general public with superior, environmentally friendly, sustainable packaging materials that can be used in place of plastic polymers.

Key Features

• Contains abundant information on advanced valorization techniques for different types of agricultural wastes
• Provides information on possible applications of component/constituents obtained by the valorization
• Discusses the impact of the incorporation of these valorized components in different packaging systems
• Reviews the legal standards and future trends in the commercialization of these derived polymers in food packaging industries

Sneh Punia Bangar, PhD, is a postdoctoral researcher in the Department of Food, Nutrition, and Packaging Sciences at Clemson University, South Carolina, USA. From 2017 to 2020, she worked as assistant professor in the Department of Food Science and Technology, Chaudhary Devi Lal University, Sirsa. Her research interests include the extraction and functional characterization of functional foods, starches, modified starches, biopolymers, and nanocomposite films/coatings. She has presented her research at various national and international conferences. Dr. Bangar has authored or co-authored more than 100 research/review articles, one book series, 2 authored books, 5 edited books, one reference book, 35 book chapters, 20 conference proceedings/seminars, and 6 Guest Editor of Journals special issues. She is the Associate Editor of the Journal of Food Measurement and Characterization, Editor of the International Journal of Food Science and Technology (Wiley), and Section Editor of current Food Science and Technology Reports (Springer). Recently, she received the Professor Gurcharan Bains Award from the Association of Food Scientists & Technologists (India) for her incredible contribution to Food Science and Technology. Her significant contributions to academia and research were acknowledged with the Award of Honour in 2019 for her outstanding achievements. She is the recipient of the GSG Outstanding Graduate Research Assistant (2022) and CAFLS Outstanding Graduate Student Research Award (2023) at Clemson University, USA. Dr. Bangar has been listed in World Ranking of Top 2% Scientists (2023), published by Stanford University, California, USA. She has an H-index of 42 with ~5000 citations, per Google Scholar.

Dr. Priyanka Kajla works as an assistant professor in the Department of Food Technology at Guru Jambheshwar University of Science & Technology, India. She completed her doctorate in 2016 from Guru Jambheshwar University of Science & Technology in Food Technology, Hisar. Dr. Kajla is a post-graduate from Chaudhary Charan Singh Haryana Agriculture University, Hisar. Her areas of specialization include oilseed processing, food chemistry, functional foods, and food packaging. She has published more than 30 research/review articles in journals of national and international repute and more than 20 book chapters. She is a life member of the prestigious Association of Food Scientists and Technologists (AFSTI), Mysore, India.