Quality assessment of innovative chitosan-based biopolymers for edible food packaging applications

Abstract Biodegradable materials and byproducts from fruit processing have great potential to improve food quality. Chitosan films as natural biopolymers can serve as carriers of active compounds such as polyphenols to provide their sustained release to food during storage and may protect them from oxidation or spoilage. This study assesses the usefulness of the application of chokeberry pomace extracts in the development of innovative biopolymer chitosan films with increased antioxidant properties. Active food packaging films based on chitosan with the addition of fraction 2 isolated on a LiChroprep RP-18 column from chokeberry pomace extract were developed. The effects of fraction 2 incorporation at different levels on the physical and chemical properties of chitosan films were investigated. The chitosan films with extracts showed better antioxidant properties than the control sample. The chokeberry extracts enhanced both the UV–vis light barrier and water vapour barrier properties of chitosan films and reduced their oxygen permeability.