UK research drives EU project developing biodegradable food packaging

In recent years, the food-packaging industry has stepped up its efforts to develop biodegradable materials for storing and transporting food materials – driven by a combination of consumer demand, increasing regulation and environmental concerns.

However, its approach has often been piecemeal in nature.

Now a recently announced four-year research programme, SustainPack, aims to address those issues by bringing together a European-wide consortium of 35 partners from 13 European Union (EU) countries, representing research associations, academia and corporations from the European food-packaging industry.

Biodegradable food packaging

With a budget of €36m, about half of which comes from an EU research programme, SustainPack aims to develop new, environmentally friendly, fibre-based packaging for food – sourced from natural, renewable materials such as wood – to replace existing oil-based plastics.

At the same time, researchers involved in the project have set a target of reducing the volume of materials used in food packaging by 30 per cent.

There is a major push from retailers to develop renewable packaging.

Professor Chris Breen,

Polymers, Composites and Spectroscopy Group,

Sheffield Hallam University

One of the main academic partners in the SustainPack initiative is UK-based Sheffield Hallam University (SHU), which is using its expertise in nanoclay particles to develop stronger and more effective biopolymer films and coatings for food packaging.

To prevent degradation of food, packaging must provide a barrier to oxygen, water and grease.

But while the existing plant-based biopolymers provide a good natural barrier to oxygen and grease, they do not provide an effective barrier to water.

Working with nanoclay

Professor Chris Breen and his colleagues in the Polymers, Composites and Spectroscopy Group (PCAS) at SHU aim to incorporate “nanoscale slabs of ceramic”, or nanoclays, into these biopolymers in order to block the passage of water through them.

“If you imagine a water molecule making its way through some food packaging, when it comes to one of these ceramic slabs, it’s the equivalent of somebody having to walk an extra mile to get around it.

“It’s like having to walk over the Alps rather than going straight through them in a tunnel,” explains Professor Breen.

One of the main challenges, however, is effectively dispersing these nanoclays within the molecular matrix of the biopolymer films.

To that end, Professor Breen’s team is using ‘modifiers’ to disperse the nanoclays throughout the packaging.

One such modifier, chitosan which is derived from the shells of crustaceans, has already proved successful and the team is working on at least five other modifiers.

Prototypes for Sainsbury’s

Another UK partner in the consortium is Sainsbury’s, the only retailer within the entire project.

As an end-user of food-packaging materials, the supermarket giant will be an important ‘acid test’ for the demonstration products that Professor Breen’s team hopes to develop.

“There is a major push from retailers to develop renewable packaging, with such a huge emphasis now on reducing carbon footprints.

“So the development of prototypes is a major focus for us, and we aim to have demonstration products to show Sainsbury’s by the end of the year,” concludes Professor Breen.