The preparation methods, application and development directions of ecological porous food packaging materials were systematically introduced. The main preparation methods were outlined based on literature study, including addition of porous phase, electrospining, phase inversion, lyophilization and supercritical CO2. The advantages and disadvantages of the above methods were discussed. Meanwhile, the authors discussed the future preparation methods for porous materials, and suggested some key technical difficulties to be focused on. The focuses of future study included controllable preparation of pore diameter, further improving the ecological feature of the materials, multi-functionalization and intellectualization of materials as well as development of new preparation methods. The ecological porous food packaging materials will play a very important role in future food packaging.