Non-food industrial applications of poultry feathers

Poultry feathers are one of the unique coproducts that have versatile applications ranging from composites, fibers, tissue engineering scaffolds, nano and micro particles, electronic devices and many others. Despite their low cost, abundant availability, wide applicability and unique properties, non-food industrial applications of feather keratin are very limited. Poor-thermoplasticity, difficulty in dissolving keratin and limited knowledge on the processability and properties of products developed are some of the limitations for the large scale use of feather/keratin. Nevertheless, increasing interests in using renewable and sustainable raw materials and need to decrease dependence on non-renewable petroleum resources make feathers an attractive raw material for bioproducts. This review provides an overview of the products developed from poultry feathers and their limitations and advantages.