Environmental Issues Related to Packaging Materials

Food packaging is essential for storage, handling, transport, and preservation of food, keeping food wastage and loss at a minimum level. Various materials such as plastic, glass, wood, metal, plant parts, etc. are being used as food packaging, with plastic dominating the field. However, most of the food packages developed today are disposed of after their first use. This raises concerns about the environmental impact of the packaging. Various strategies such as recycling, reducing, and reusing of packaging have the potential to decrease this impact. There is a rising demand for the development of effective and efficient sustainable packaging, which is safe for health and the environment. This chapter discusses the different food packaging materials and the environmental impacts of food packaging and the waste management methods along with the regulations for the packaging materials.