NY Times: Wyndmoor’s USDA Research Laboratory Developing Milk Based Packaging

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A team at Wyndmoor's USDA research laboratory have developed a new packaging material from milk protein that can be used to protect cheese or line pizza boxes.

Taking environmentally friendly food packaging to a new level, the team at Wyndmoor’s USDA research laboratory has come up with a potential solution using milk protein, writes Stephanie Strom for The New York Times.

This could be used to line pizza boxes, wrap cheese, and even to coat cereal flakes to help them stay crunchy longer. This is only one out of a number of efforts around the globe to create packaging from food. However, introducing these products into the market has been a challenge.

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The project originated from USDA’s attempts of to find alternative ways to make use some of its stores of milk powder. However, Peggy Tomasula, a research leader at the laboratory, said it is not yet economical for certain applications.

USAD had tried to build interest in a product based on milk protein over a decade ago, but it found no takers, said Tomasula. The main issues were the cost and its susceptibility to moisture.

“Edible films were just getting started then, and there were a lot of people playing around with them,” she said. “But food waste and food security weren’t big issues then, and nobody really seemed to notice.”

Read more about the green initiative at The New York Times by clicking here.

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