Chitosan edible films and coatings have shown great promise for their application in food preservation and also
are promising systems to be used as essential oil (EO) carriers. This review reports the most recent and relevant
studies concerning chitosan films and coatings containing EOs. The effect of EO incorporation on the antioxidant,
antibacterial and antifungal activities of chitosan films and coatings in vitro and in vivo, as well as their applications
in food systems have been discussed. In general, incorporation of EOs significantly increased the antioxidant,
antibacterial and antifungal efficacy of chitosan films and coatings in vitro. EO-incorporated films and
coatings also showed greater effectiveness against postharvest fungi and foodborne bacteria in food systems
than pure films and coatings. The application of chitosan films and coatings containing EOs usually led to an extension
of the shelf-life and reduction of lipid peroxidation of fish andmeat products over pure chitosan films and
coatings. In addition, chitosan coatings incorporated with EOs were more effective in maintaining fruit and vegetable
quality, and controlling their postharvest decay during storage and shelf life than pure chitosan coatings