Anthocyanin is a kind of green and safe water -soluble pigment from plants,has excellent antioxidant and antibacterial properties,as well as sensitive pH response.Based on the structure and biological activity of anthocyanins,this review focused on the research progress of anthocyanins in the field of food preservation packaging and freshness indication,and analyzed the application status and development trend of anthocyanin -based composite films and microcapsules as well as anthocyanin -based freshness indication labels.