Design and Development of Robust, Daylight-Activated, and Rechargeable Biocidal Polymeric Films as Promising Active Food Packaging Materials

The emerging infectious diseases have created one ofthe majorpractical needs to develop active packaging materials with durableantibacterial and antiviral properties for the food industry. To meetthis demand, the development of new technologies applicable to foodcontact surfaces is highly desired but challenging. The recent discoveryof the photoactive properties of vitamin K (VK) derivatives has raisedgreat expectations as promising candidates in functional film developmentdue to the generation of biocidal reactive oxygen species (ROS) bythese compounds. Inspired by the excellent photoactivity of one ofthe light-stable VK derivatives, menadione (VK3), undervisible daylight irradiation, we demonstrate a protocol for the fabricationof daylight-mediated biocidal packaging materials by incorporatingVK(3) into a poly (ethylene-co-vinyl acetate) (EVA) matrix.The VK3 (i.e., 1-5% w/w) incorporated EVA filmssuccessfully demonstrated the production of ROS and antibacterialand antiviral performance against Escherichia coli, Listeria innocua, and T7 bacteriophage,respectively, under daylight exposure conditions. The results revealedthat the addition of a proper percentage of VK3 significantlyenhanced the ROS productivity of the films and created a novel daylight-inducedmicrobial killing performance on the films. The biocidal functionsof the films are long-lasting and rechargeable when exposed to lightrepeatedly, making them a viable contender for replacing currentlyavailable conventional packaging films.

Automated summary

The demand for active packaging materials with durable antibacterial and antiviral properties in the food industry has increased due to the emergence of infectious diseases. The photoactive properties of vitamin K (VK) derivatives, particularly menadione (VK3), have shown promise in the development of functional films with biocidal properties. By incorporating VK3 into a poly (ethylene-co-vinyl acetate) (EVA) matrix, daylight-mediated biocidal packaging materials were successfully fabricated, demonstrating antibacterial and antiviral performance against various microorganisms.