What is the purpose of using array_filter() in PHP, and how can it help in handling array variables effectively?

When working with array variables in PHP, sometimes we need to filter out certain elements based on specific criteria. This is where the array_filter() function comes in handy. It allows us to iterate over an array and apply a callback function to each element, keeping only the elements that satisfy the callback's conditions.

// Example of using array_filter() to remove empty values from an array
$fruits = ['apple', '', 'banana', '', 'cherry'];
$filtered_fruits = array_filter($fruits, function($value) {
    return $value !== '';
});
print_r($filtered_fruits);