Introduction Biodegradable packaging from renewable resources has been widely studied as an alternative to synthetic plastics, which are known to cause negative environmental impacts. Polysaccharides,proteins and lipids, employed separately or in combination, are themain materials used to produce edible films and coatings (Davisand Song, 2006). Gelatin, a protein typically obtained by hydrolysis of collagen present in bones, skin and tissues of animals, presents in numerous advantages such as biodegradability, biocompatibility and plasticity, which contribute to its film-forming ability (Gómez-Estaca et al., 2009b