From January 1, 2022, France banned the sale of fruits and vegetables in plastic packaging weighing less than 1.5 kg, including bananas, pears, lemons, peppers, cucumbers, carrots and 30 other fruits and vegetables. 2026, the ban will be extended to all fruits and vegetables.
It is estimated that about 37% of France's fruit and vegetables are packaged, but the new law encourages the use of reusable bags, which could prevent the use of at least one billion plastic packages per year.
After plastic packaging was banned (including bioplastics), only paper bags and other packaging materials can be used. However, compared with plastic packaging, paper packaging has poor barrier and water resistance, and needs to continuously improve its performance. At the beginning of the year, the Swiss Federal Laboratories for Materials Science and Technology ( EMPA ) and Lidl Switzerland developed an ecological nanofiber film coating for bananas, which can avoid plastic packaging and effectively extend the shelf life of fruits, simply by coating the bananas with a cellulose film. After a year of research and development, EMPA researchers used completely renewable raw materials to create the protective fruit and vegetable coatings.
1 . Extended shelf life
EMPA's cellulose coating ensures the freshness of fruits and vegetables, keeping them "significantly fresher" for longer than uncoated products.
"In the tests, the shelf life of bananas, for example, was extended by more than a week. This reduces food waste," says Gustav Nystrm, head of the Empa Institute."
Bananas with EMPA coating and bananas without coating in shelf life test
Surveys show that 60% of consumers worldwide are willing to sacrifice shelf life to reduce plastic packaging, and 56% are willing to sacrifice product protection to reduce the plastic used in packaging. But market researchers say that more than half of global consumers believe that products are better for environmental sustainability, but that packaging performance should not be compromised.
"Our main goal is for this bio-coating to replace a lot of petroleum-based packaging in the future." Nystrm said.
2 . Production process
The production of the coating includes the processing of "fruit pomace" into raw fibrillated cellulose. "This is the solid residue that remains after extracting the juice from fruits, vegetables and plants," explains Nystrm. Traditionally, he says, the plant's "leftovers" are disposed of directly in biogas plants and farm fields, but in the future they will be used to make protective coatings for fruits and vegetables.
The nanofiber protective film is sprayed on the product and is not harmful to the consumer, so the solution can be rinsed before consumption.
This new technology will be used in all Lidl Switzerland stores. Meanwhile, Nystrm says the potential of the cellulose coating has not yet been fully realized. He adds, "There is the possibility of adding additives such as vitamins and antioxidants."
3 . Switzerland
Initial product studies starting in 2019 are now "successful". EMPA's cellulose layer will be tested and refined over the next two years. The study includes a collaboration with Lidl Switzerland, supported by the Swiss Innovation Agency (Innosuisse).
Nystrm confirms, "Our goal is to use the new technology in all of our 150 stores in Switzerland after the success of our main experiment." Related to this, Sufresca, based in Israel, has developed edible coatings for fruits and vegetables in order to eliminate plastic packaging from fresh produce and reduce food loss and waste.
Meanwhile, Morrisons will be the first UK supermarket to remove plastic banana bags from its shelves as part of a 50% cut in own-brand primary plastic packaging by 2025.
