Food System

Active and intelligent packaging. Rules, state of the art, the ENEA patent

July 16, 2020

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Active and intelligent packaging-in the context of Materials and Objects Intended to Come into Contact with Food (MOCA)-is that which is capable of interacting with the food it contains. The former aspire to improve product preservation, the latter to communicate any critical issues in this regard. Rules and the state of the art, with a nod to the patent and ongoing work at the ENEA Research Center in Portici.

Table of Contents

Active packaging

Active packaging absorbs or releases substances, either into the product or into the environment where it is located. The first example is modified atmosphere preservation technology, which is carried out with a mixture of inert gases (nitrogen, carbon dioxide and oxygen) placed and maintained in the hermetically sealed primary packaging. For the purpose of inhibiting microbial proliferation and extending the shelf-life of perishable products. (1)

‘Active materials and articles intended to come into contact with foodstuffs’ means materials and articles intended to prolong the shelf life or maintain or improve the condition of packaged foodstuffs. They are designed to deliberately incorporate components that release substances into or absorb them from the packaged food product or its environment’ (EC Reg. 1935/04, Article 2.2.a).

Absorbent materials are widely used in numerous applications:

– Oxygen absorbers (in bags, trays and containers). Which, in absorbing oxygen within the package, inhibit the growth of microorganisms (e.g., molds, yeasts) and slow down the oxidation processes of foods. Some of them also release substances with bacteriostatic action, such as ethanol,

– ethylene absorbers. A naturally occurring substance in plants that is responsible for their ripening and spoilage,

– moisture absorbers (super-absorbent materials generally placed at the bottom of meat and fish trays) trap the released liquid of the food and thus inhibit the growth of microorganisms.

Anti-bacterial and anti-mold films are now one of the most vibrant fronts of active packaging development. The presence of substances with antibacterial properties-such as chitosan (extracted from the exoskeleton of crustaceans), tea tree oil, alginates (extracted from seaweed), cinnamon and thyme oils, and ethanol-inhibits the proliferation of microorganisms. Of particular effectiveness in direct contact with baked goods and other foods with appreciable moisture contents.

Smart packaging

Smart packaging is used to keep food storage conditions under control. How
ripeSense
, a microscopic sensor that (by measuring the amount of ethylene inside the package) shows the degree of ripeness of the fruit with a color gradation that varies and is visible on the label.

‘Intelligent materials and articles intended to come into contact with foodstuffs’ (hereafter referred to as ‘intelligent materials and articles’) means materials and articles that control the condition of the packaged foodstuff or its environment’ (EC Reg. 1935/04, Article 2.2.b).

Time Temperature Indicators (TTIs) allow the freshness level of the product and its actual suitability for its intended use to be shown on the label. Their application on end-consumer products is very poor, as no one has an interest in revealing to the public (nor to the control authorities) the recurring critical issues in food storage at the logistics and distribution stages. Critical issues pertaining particularly to the (dis)continuity of cold and frost chains.

The Hygiene Package, it is worth remembering, should have been supplemented by a regulation on temperature control. But such a regulation, due to pneumatic pressure from countervailing lobbies, was never adopted. For more details see the freeebook ‘Food Safety, Mandatory Rules and Voluntary Standards,’ at https://www.greatitalianfoodtrade.it/libri/sicurezza-alimentare-regole-cogenti-e-norme-volontarie-il-nuovo-libro-di-dario-dongo.

Applicable European rules, the ABC

Regulation (EC) No. 1935/04 – the basis of the Food Control Materials (FCM, or MOCA) framework–defines in Article 4 the ‘special requirements for active and intelligent materials and objects.’ (2) THE ABCS:

A) permissible interactions. Active materials and objects ‘may result in changes in the composition or organoleptic characteristics of food products,’ subject to applicable food law. With particular regard to the regulation of food additives,

B) authorizations. ‘Substances deliberately incorporated into active materials and articles intended for release into foodstuffs or the environment in which they are found‘ are subject to authorization and use ‘in accordance withthe relevant Community provisions applicable to foodstuffs,’ according to reg. EC 1935/04 and its implementing measures,

C) consumer information. Active and intelligent materials and objects must come properly labeled. Also to enable the consumer to identify the inedible parts. The substances incorporated therein qualify as ingredients, for the purpose of consumer information (EU reg. 1169/11),

D) prohibitions. ‘Active materials and objects do not result in changes in the composition or organoleptic characteristics of food products that could mislead consumers, such as by covering up their spoilage.
‘Smart materials and objects do not provide information about the condition of the food product such that they can mislead consumers.’

Reg. EC 450/09 implements the FCM Regulation by provision of the specific requirements for placing active and intelligent materials and articles intended to come into contact with food on the market. (3) They are established as follows:

– A ‘Community list of substances that can be used in intelligent active components‘ (Articles 5-8),

– ‘the use of substances not required to be on the Community List‘ (Articles 9-10),

– labeling requirements (Art. 11),

– compliance statements and documentation to be made available to authorities upon request (Articles 12, 13).

Portici ENEA Center’s patentand research

Researchers at the ENEA (National Agency for New Technologies, Energy and Sustainable Economic Development) Research Center in Portici have patented a smart label that combines a temperature time indicator with an RFID(Radio Frequency Identification) tag. (4) Of potential interest to the agribusiness, medical and pharmaceutical sectors.

This application has the unique advantage of enabling continuous monitoring of the preservation of packaged products at every stage of the supply chain. In fact, the smart label wirelessly transmits the over-temperature signal. With the dual benefit of enabling:

– immediate corrective actions, in the event of, for example, a cold storage or truck-fridge malfunction,

– Precise allocation of responsibility in case of deterioration of products.

Research now continues with the further goal of developing a sensor that can sense alterations (voluntary and involuntary) in packaging. With a view to integrating food safety and food defense guarantees.

Dario Dongo and Ylenia Desireè Patti Giammello

Notes

(1) Already, Directive 95/2/EC on food additives other than colors and sweeteners-referred to defined packaging gases as those other than air, introduced into a container before, during and after introducing a foodstuff into that container. This definition was taken up in reg. EC 1333/08, on food additives, in Annex I, item 20
(2) Reg. EC 1935/04, concerning materials and articles intended to come into contact with foodstuffs and repealing Directives 80/590/EEC and 89/109/EEC. Consolidated text as of 6/18/09 at https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/IT/TXT/?qid=1594899609216&uri=CELEX%3A02004R1935-20090807

(3) Reg. EC 450/09, concerning active and intelligent materials intended to come into contact with food. https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/IT/TXT/?qid=1594909752894&uri=CELEX:32009R0450

(4) ENEA. Innovation: comes the ‘smart’ label to control the storage of products. Press release 19.3.20 https://www.enea.it/it/Stampa/news/innovazione-arriva-letichetta-intelligente-per-controllare-la-conservazione-dei-prodotti