Thermoplastic starch-ZnO nanocomposites: A comprehensive review of their applications in functional food packaging.

The increasing demand for environmentally friendly food packaging solutions has driven extensive research on biodegradable materials, particularly thermoplastic starch (TPS), which is an eco-friendly alternative to petroleum-based plastics. Despite its eco-friendliness, TPS exhibits limitations, including inadequate mechanical and thermal properties, high water sensitivity, and low antibacterial activity. Although strategies such as chemical modification, blending, and compatibilizers have been employed to enhance TPS for functional packaging applications, they often fail to address these fundamental issues.