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Brasil
PackTrends
2020
143
quality and new technologies
6.1 ACTIVE PACKAGES
Active packages and intelligent packages are
associated, hence they are called smart packages,
though they are conceptually different. The term
“active packages” refers to a series of technologies in
which the package interacts directly with the product or
through the package headspace, in order to assure the
quality and safety or to increase the shelf life of foods
and pharmaceuticals. They are basically divided in two
groups: those ones that absorb harmful compounds to
the packed product and those ones that emit compounds
that improve the properties and/or increase the shelf life
of the product.
The active packages include oxygen absorbers
which aim to protect the product against oxidative
degradation reaction, that causes the loss of sensorial
properties (such as flavor, color and odor), and
against the loss of active principles in cosmetics and
pharmaceuticals; CO
2
absorbers for roasted and ground
coffee, minimizing the package blowing; ethylene
absorbers for fresh fruits, slowing down the ripening;
moisture absorbers/controllers to protect products
against humidification; off odor absorbers; cholesterol
absorbers etc.. Among the active packages, the highest
application volumes are in moisture and oxygen
absorbers.
The inverse function of emitters also increases
the stability and assures the quality of many products.
Examples of this category of active package are antioxidant
compounds emitters, ethanol emitters with anti-mold
properties, CO
2
emitters with antimicrobial action
(fungistatic and bacteriostatic) and SO
2
emitters acting
on certain fungi. Related to those antimicrobial packages
there are also films with ionic silver incorporation.
The ultimate emitter-active packages are also
known as Controlled Release Packaging – CRP, which
means that they release, in a controlled manner, during
storage, active compounds such as antimicrobial agents,
antioxidants, flavor enhancers, enzymes, nutraceuticals
compounds and others.
The incorporation of metals (zinc and magnesium)
to preserve color, of enzymes blockers, antiadherente
packages, and many other functionalities can also be
classified as active packages, lots of them produced
based in nanotechnologies. The modified atmosphere
packages are traditionally considered as active packages.
The early active packages were focused on
incorporating the active agent in sachets. Nowadays,
the focus have been either on the incorporation or
the immobilization of the active agent in the package
material itself (mono or multilayer), in caps, corks,
liners and labels. This is a way to maximize the active
package efficiency and minimize problems related to
the inclusion of a foreign item inside the package,
which may lead the customer to a misinterpretation and
may prejudice the production line.
The technological advancements in active packages
are limited by legal barriers concerning the food safety.
Active compounds need to be registered on positive
lists and the total and specific migration limits must be
respected. Though, as the legal requirements are being
fulfilled, the companies are beginning to quantify the
economic advantages of the active technology usage,
and the consumers realized the quality and/or safety
improvement, it is very likely that the active packages will
become an important technology for food and beverage
preservation.
The residual oxygen inside the package is chemical
and biological-active for the degradation of foods,
beverages, pharmaceuticals, cosmetics, agrochemicals
etc. Therefore the conventional use of passive barrier
package associated to the nitrogen gas flushing,
vacuum or modified atmosphere was complemented by
the active package with oxygen absorbers.
The oxygen absorbers are able to reduce the
Oxygen Absorbers