Hydrogels have received increasing attention in the field of food packaging due to their high ductility and good biocompatibility. However, as a soft material, the hydrogel is susceptible to damage caused by external factors during transportation, handling and storage, posing a great threat to food safety. Self-healing hydrogels, the smart hydrogels that can be restored to their original structure and function after physical damage, can effectively solve the above problems. The repair mechanism and preparation method of self-healing hydrogels were reviewed based on reversible covalent cross-linking and reversible non-covalent cross-linking by introducing their potential applications in the field of food packaging, and finally the existing problems and future development direction of self-healing hydrogels were summarized.