Serbian project targets sustainable packaging

A project dedicated to sustainable food packaging and monitoring in South Serbia has started this month.

PACKSENSOR (The impact of the controlled atmosphere on quality and safety of the close-seal-packaged food applied in the SMEs of South Serbia) will help monitor influence of packaging on food safety, currently not looked at by local firms due to the lack of trained personnel and proper equipment.

Representatives of the Faculty of Technology in Leskovac, University of Nis, Serbia set out their needs to the Institute of Photonics and Nanotechnologies of the Italian National Research Council (CNR-IFN).

A visit to local markets looked at the main packaging used by the local SMEs and The Italian Research Council explained its work in gas content measurement in food packages.

A contactless laser gas sensor will be created that is able to leave gas mixtures in packages unchanged, maintaining the quality and extending the products’ shelf-life.

It could be used for a variety of activities as it can operate on surfaces such as food trays, bags and bottles.

The project is co-financed with a grant within the CEI Know How Exchange Programme (KEP ITALY) in the CEI Fund at the EBRD and will run until August 2016. The CEI grant is €37,000 out of the total project cost of €80,000.