Natural polymer-based food packaging: paving the way to a greener future – a review

Abstract

Food packaging materials play a major role in the current plastics industry. To pursue environmental protection and sustainability, the search for alternatives to replace conventional plastics has emerged as an industry-wide imperative. This article offers a comprehensive comparison of different food packaging materials, analysing both synthetic and natural polymers across key performance criteria. The analysis reveals that natural polymers demonstrate superior biodegradability, tensile strength, and oxygen barrier properties. Conversely, synthetic packaging exhibits significant advantages in elongation performance, mass production, and costs due to mature manufacturing technology. However, this review also highlights the need to overcome key challenges related to their production scalability, mechanical and barrier properties, and waste treatment. Realizing their full potential will require close collaboration among researchers, industry stakeholders, and policymakers to promote sustainable solutions.