Valorization of agri-food waste for sustainable extraction of bioactive compounds and their application in bio-based packaging

Agri-food waste (fruit peels, pomace, cereal brans, oilseed cakes, dairy, meat, seafood by-products) represents 30–70% of biomass and serves as a potent source of bioactive compounds (phenolics, flavonoids, carotenoids, peptides, polysaccharides) for bio-based packaging applications. This review details the valorization of agri-food waste using green extraction technologies such as ultrasound-assisted extraction (UAE), microwave-assisted extraction (MAE), supercritical fluid extraction (SFE), and pressurized liquid extraction (PLE) methods which achieve up to 96.64% phenolic recovery from citrus peels compared to 7.58 mg GAE/g by conventional Soxhlet extraction. It helps in minimizing solvent usage by 70–90% and energy demands by 50–80% and countering environmental impacts like methane emissions and soil degradation. These bio actives enable bio-based active packaging for shelf-life extension. Furthermore, these compounds enhance antimicrobial performance of bio-based active and intelligent packaging films against pathogens such as Staphylococcus aureus and Escherichia coli while improving mechanical strength and pH-responsive intelligent films, Strategies including micro and nano-encapsulation and stimuli-responsive systems while addressing bioavailability challenges and ensuring regulatory compliance, paving the way for zero-waste circular bioeconomy pathways despite scalability challenges and matrix heterogeneity. Advancing biorefinery models promises zero-waste circular economy solutions for food technology.