Food shopping is changing and so too is the way food is wrapped for sale. Clear plastic wrapping allows the consumer to see the state of the food inside at the same time as preventing contamination from dust and bacteria. But now supermarkets are looking at new types of packaging. Some supermarkets have decided to wrap their fresh fruit and vegetables in biodegradable plastic packaging instead of conventional plastic. Biodegradable plastics or bioplastics can be made from plant-based materials such as starch from corn, wheat, or potatoes. In the environment, micro-organisms are able to break down these plastics easily and quickly to produce carbon dioxide and water. Biodegradable plastics can also be made by some bacteria that are capable of producing granules of plastic (PHA/PHB) in their cells. Biodegradable plastic packaging can be composted and allows customers to dispose of their own waste at home. Active packaging is a new development that can interact with the product to improve it or provide the consumer with information about the freshness of the product. An American company has developed a label that indicates the temperature a package has been stored at. A chemical in the label polymerizes and becomes darker in colour if the temperature rises. Another company has developed a membrane wrapper which changes its permeability to oxygen and carbon dioxide as the temperature changes so that the best O2/CO2 balance can be achieved inside the packaging.

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