Abstract Global food loss and plastic pollution have emerged as critical environmental challenges, with over one-third of food produced for human consumption wasted annually and millions of tons of petroleum-based plastic packaging discarded in landfills and oceans. To address these issues, edible films and coatings derived from agricultural by-products have gained increasing attention as sustainable, biodegradable alternatives to conventional packaging. These films form semi-permeable barriers that regulate gas exchange, moisture transfer, and oxidation while offering the potential to incorporate natural antimicrobials and antioxidants. This review explores the valorisation of agricultural residues – including orange, lime, mango, pomegranate, potato, prickly pear, and other fruit peels – as renewable raw materials for the production of functional edible films. It highlights the historical evolution of edible packaging, the physicochemical properties of polysaccharide-, protein-, lipid-, and composite-based films, and modern processing techniques such as electro-spraying, solution casting, and 3D printing. Additionally, it emphasises advances in barrier performance, mechanical strength, and bioactivity resulting from the incorporation of plant extracts and nanomaterials. By converting agri-waste into value-added biodegradable films, this approach not only enhances food shelf life and safety but also contributes to circular economy goals and reduces environmental burden.
Gupta et al. (2026) studied this question.