Design of Biodegradable, Climate-Specific Packaging Materials that Sense Food Spoilage and Extend Shelf-Life

The AgriFood systems in tropical climates are under strain due to a rapid increase in human population and extreme environmental conditions that limit the efficacy of packaging technologies to extend food shelf-life and guarantee food safety. To address these challenges, we rationally designed biodegradable packaging materials that sense spoilage and prevent moulding. We nanofabricated the interface of 2D covalent organic frameworks (COF) to reinforce silk fibroin (SF) and obtain biodegradable membranes with augmented mechanical properties and that displayed an immediate colorimetric response (within 1 second) to food spoilage, using packaged poultry as an example. Loading COF with antimicrobial hexanal also mitigated biotic spoilage in high temperature and humidity conditions, resulting in a four-order of magnitude decrease in the total amount of mould growth in soybeans packaged in silk-COF, when compared to cling film (i.e., polyethylene). Together, the integration of sensing, structural reinforcement, and antimicrobial agent delivery within a biodegradable nanocomposite framework defines climate-specific packaging materials that can decrease food waste and enhance food safety.