Introduction of biopolymers: Food and biomedical applications

Abstract Synthetic polymers encompass plethora of characteristics demanded in various applications but unfortunately pose detrimental effects on environment and health. The previously mentioned impact dawned the realization to utilize the potential of natural polymers in virtually all fields. Although being highly preferred, biopolymers lack certain properties such as mechanical strength and processibility, highly demanded in food, biomedical, and other sectors. These limitations have been eradicated through different cross-linking techniques, which have brought the potentiality of developing mechanically stable biopolymeric architectures. Although, chemical cross-linking methods ensure the creation of stable polymeric architectures, they are associated with the risk of being cytotoxic and reactive to the encapsulated bioactives. In this chapter, a concise description regarding the various physical and chemical cross-linking strategies, properties of the abundantly available biologically derived polymers, and their recent applications in food and biomedical industries have been provided.