Properties of starch triacetate films from different botanical origins were evaluated. Tensile and barrier properties, glass transition temperatures and moisture uptake were measured, and the molecular structure was characterised. High-amylose starches were good film formers, normal potato starch formed continuous but brittle films and potato amylopectin formed very brittle films even after plasticisation. Barley amylopectin did not form continuous films. Different plasticisers were studied and diacetin was shown to perform better than the standard plasticiser triacetin. All films were water resistant, and the best films gave water vapour barriers in the range of films of polylactic acid, cellulose acetates and gluten. The inherent oxygen barrier of native starches was lost when the starches were highly acetylated. Starch triacetates are commonly dissolved in organic solvents such as chloroform. When testing different approaches to dissolve the starch triacetates it was found that acetic acid as well as acetylacetone were good solvents without imposing negative effects on material properties.