Nanotec helping industry with three-pronged approach

The Thai food industry is getting a hand from the National Nanotechnology Centre (Nanotec), which is developing products weaned that can support the industry across the entire value chain.

The centre has also set up a team to conduct research on "nano foods".

The adoption of nanotechnology in the food industry will help local producers add value to their products while lengthening shelf life.

Nuttapun Supaka, head of Nanotec's testing service unit, said the centre will focus on three key areas: nutraceutical delivery systems, food packaging and food-safety systems.

Using nanotechnology in nutraceutical delivery systems will help food manufacturers develop better food products that can deliver active ingredients, including vitamins and nutrients, efficiently.

The centre plans to focus on development of the nano-encapsulation technique. This technique puts active ingredients in nano-size capsules, allowing food manufacturers to add more nutrients to their food and beverage products.

The technique is suitable for encapsulating vitamins, which dissolve only in fat, Nuttapun said. For example, nano-encapsulation can allow manufacturers develop drinking water that contains vitamins.

The centre expects to take nano-encapsulation in Thai food and beverage products to the commercial stage in the next two years.

To extend the shelf life of foods, the centre plans to develop a new "active" packaging that not only keeps products fresh longer but also offers anti-odour functionality, Nuttapun said.

The centre is developing a film coated with nano-sized titanium dioxide molecules that can be used to wrap foods or fruits, such as durian, that have a pungent smell, he said.

"Particles of titanium dioxide react with the fruit's smell molecules by turning them into carbon dioxide. This makes fruits wrapped with the new film smell-free," he said.

Apart from deodorising properties, the new film will also prolong the product's shelf life by maintaining its ripeness.

The centre plans to take the active packaging commercial in the next two years.

The packaging is expected to help allay safety concerns that many countries have when it comes to imported food.

Monitoring contamination of food is another area the centre is focusing on. It will encourage the development of nano-sensors that detect chemical or bacterial contamination in food products.

The development of an electronic nose is one such example.