Recent advancements in smart and intelligent packaging technologies: an overview

The field of smart packaging technologies has been a field of great interest in recent years due to the advancement of the technologies necessary for its application and the growing concern of consumers and regulators to guarantee the quality and safety of food and reduce waste in the food chain. Even so, the number of examples on the market is still limited, indicating that it is necessary to carry out new developments. This book chapter describes the main advances that have taken place over recent years in the field of smart and intelligent packaging technologies, together with a critical analysis of the results and a discussion of current trends in the sector. Among the sensors, we can find films based on pH indicators, mainly from natural origin, in polymers of natural origin. Other approaches include moisture sensors, time–temperature indicators, biosensors, and radio-frequency identification. The tendencies include the detection of other molecules, and the integration with electronics and computational techniques, but the number of articles on these topics is scarce. The chapter will provide an overview of the latest developments in smart and intelligent packaging technologies.