This polymeric film uses a pH-sensitive dye to detect spoilage in packaged food products to monitor food spoilage and thereby enhance safety. Food spoilage represents a major problem worldwide; more than one third of all food produced for consumption is wasted or spoiled. Food spoilage occurs at various stages of processing and can be detected by a change in pH, making it feasible to use pH to monitor spoilage relative to expiration date and determine whether a food product is safe for consumption, transportation, or storage. Researchers at the University of Florida have developed a polymer packaging film that incorporates a pH indicator dye. This novel film uses glycerol to create dendrimeric nanocapsules, which along with the pH-sensitive dye are incorporated into the polymer.
Spoilage-detecting packaging film for food products
This partially bio-based polymer film encapsulates pH-sensitive dye to detect food spoilage based on its pH levels. By incorporating stimuli-responsive and agricultural by-product materials, University of Florida researchers have developed a sustainable, cost-effective polymer packaging film for food products to detect spoilage. Researchers used glycerol, which results from the waste stream of biodiesel production, to synthesize a triacrylate monomer. The synthesized glycerol is then used to produce dendrimeric nanocapsules copolymerized in the presence of pH-sensitive dye, thereby encapsulating the dye into the polymer. Though proof of concept was established with the pH-sensitive dye in these experiments, other physical and chemical stimuli could be used in the polymer film for detecting food spoilage.