Agrowaste derived phenolic compounds as additives to chitosan film for food packaging applications : Antibacterial and antioxidant study

Department of Chemistry, Motilal Nehru National Institute of Technology, Allahabad-211 004, Uttar Pradesh, India E-mail : gkmehrotra@mnnit.ac.in The objective of this study was to explore the incorporation and affect of agrowaste derived phenolic compounds (APCs) into chitosan films on their antibacterial and antioxidant behavior for food packaging. APCs were generated by treatment of agrowastes namely, rice husk, sugarcane baggasse and bamboo with dilute acid hydrolysis (0.5%, H2SO4) and isolated with the help of hydrophobic resin. The antibacterial activity of APCs loaded chitosan films was tested against microbial strains B. subtilis (Gram +ve) and P. aeruginosa (Gram –ve) bacteria. The results have shown significant inhibitory activity against these bacterial growths. The enhanced scavenging, reducing power and antioxidant activity of the films have been studied. The cytotoxicity of films was reduced by addition of APCs in other words polyphenolic compounds enhance the cell viability. The investigation has shown the benefits of incorporation of APCs into chitosan films and the potential for using waste materials as additives into chitosan based films for active food packaging applications