Intelligent Packaging for Food Products

Abstract

This chapter introduces an overall overview of the intelligent packaging (IP) systems; the emerging technology that has recently received an immense interest not only from the researchers but also from the consumers as a very attractive alternative to the conventional packaging due to the many benefits such as monitoring and maintaining the safety of products throughout the supply chain from the producers to the consumers and prolonging the shelf life of food products. The IP includes indicators (time-temperature indicators; integrity or gas indicators; freshness indicators); barcodes and radiofrequency identification tags (RFID); sensors (biosensors; gas sensors; fluorescence-based oxygen sensors), etc. Current technical addresses of the IP were updated. And also legal aspects of using the IP as well as problems associated with the commercialization and some probable solutions that will lead to wider adoption of this technology in the food industry in the near future were discussed. © 2014 Elsevier Ltd All rights reserved.