<p>Packaging is fundamental in food preservation, protecting food from adverse environmental effects. However, the extensive use of synthetic polymers in food packaging has raised environmental concerns, driving the development of biodegradable materials as sustainable alternatives. Additionally, challenges such as real-time food quality monitoring and food contamination by harmful pathogens and chemicals compromise food safety and security. Biodegradable smart packaging emerges as a promising solution to address these issues, enabling real-time food quality monitoring and preservation by combining intelligent and active concepts. As a new class of carbon nanomaterials, carbon dots can be integrated with smart packaging as an active and intelligent component for food quality monitoring and preservation. Carbon dots present remarkable antimicrobial, antioxidant, fluorescence, and barrier properties with negligible cytotoxicity, making them ideal candidates for smart packaging applications. This review explores the advancements in biodegradable smart packaging for real-time food quality monitoring and preservation. Moreover, the review emphasizes the desirable properties of carbon dots for smart food packaging and highlights their potential applications in food quality monitoring and preservation. Future directions of smart packaging in the food industry and potential challenges are also discussed. Integrating carbon dots into biodegradable smart packaging offers a dual benefit: enhancing food safety and security by reducing food waste while promoting sustainability.</p>