Current Review on Application ofFluoropolymer as Food Processing andPackaging Material
Food is one of the most basic necessities of all living organisms in the ecosystem. Humans use packaged food as a result of their embrace of a cleaner and more sophisticated lifestyle. The food industry sector is evolving day by day to supply consumers with nutritious and appetising food. They employed numerous chemicals in industrial activities while doing so, but the last company has to follow specific standards and be certified by food safety authorities in that country before releasing their food goods onto the market. The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) certify the quality of food products in India. Food recipes are an important aspect of the food industry since they are directly tied to flavour and, consequently, product demand in the market. However, since we aim to scale up production of this recipe, we have carefully looked for food processing and packaging industries. Conveyors, gears, hoppers, and other pieces of food processing equipment are included. Material selection for this type of equipment is done on the idea that the material should not contaminate the food being processed through it. The material used for packing is quite specialised and is determined by the product being packaged.
Food packaging materials are classified into three types: rigid, semi-rigid, and flexiblepackaging. Rigid packaging materials include glass, metal, cardboard, and so on, but semi-rigidpackaging combines the benefits of rigid and flexible packaging, such as aluminium foil, whichhas good strength and flexibility. Flexible packaging is widely utilised and is primarily made ofpolymeric materials such as PE, PET, and others.
Because of our hurried and stressful daily schedules, human civilization is gravitating towardsimpler and safer methods of cooking meals. With this perspective, food technologists createdthe concept of ready-to-eat food culture, which only requires heating before consumption.Though the reparation of such food is simple, choosing materials for its packaging is a difficulttask for researchers. Because the packaging material should not decay and become intermingledwith the food enclosed within. As a result, the material must be extremely thermally stable. As aresult, Teflon is preferred since its thermal breakdown temperature is very high when comparedto any other polymeric material, hovering about 310 to 320 ⁰C. Because of its thermal stability,it is also employed as an interior coating in microwave oven kitchenware. Thermal stability andthermal insulation are two highly significant features for the packing and delivery of popularfood products such as pizza. Teflon has these needed qualities; hence it is used for the innercoating of pizza boxes. Food packaging material should not react with any food ingredient putinside, nor should it be mixed with it. Teflon has a remarkable chemically inert nature, so it willnot react with food stuff packed, and it also has very low solubility in a wide variety of solvents,which eliminates the possibility of being mixed into food material.
Food processing, like food packing, is a significantly technical sector in the food industry thathelps to preserve the highest quality of food in huge quantities. Conveyor belts, gears, blenders,and other machine parts are frequently in touch with food products. Teflon has an extraordinarily low wear rate even at high operating temperatures. Conveyor belts, gears, and blenders in thefood sector are always operated in such a way that high-pressure fluid comes into touch with thesurface of these parts. Thus, the surface of these parts must be sufficiently smooth so that it does not wear away and become mixed into the food being processed, resulting in contamination.Thus, Teflon coating is applied to these parts because it meets all standards.
Teflon is a hot topic for academics in a variety of industries due to its versatile range ofproperties, and its uses, particularly in the food processing and packaging sectors, are rising dayby day. As a result, Teflon is regarded as an emerging food packaging and processing material.
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