A number of different shrimp waste active materials, including lipoprotein concentrates, protein hydrolysates, and a carotenoid extract, were found to increase the antioxidant properties of chitosan-based solutions considerably. The incorporation of an astaxanthin-rich protein concentrate in a chitosan solution led to an increase in its antimicrobial capacity, but no further effect was observed after extra addition of the carotenoid extract. None of the materials tested had any hindering effect on the viscous behavior of the solutions which might have impaired their performance as a coating layer.