Food packaging trends change often, but there are continual efforts by the companies that ship and produce food to push the industry into new directions.
Everything from increased use of organic packing products to new ways to keep produce itself safer than ever are influencing change in the market.
The Packer reported that one company that distributes organic produce is working to introduce a new packaging material that will help businesses improve their overall sustainability. The product itself is made from sugar cane but feels like cardboard and can be recycled like paper. It's also made from plant waste leftover from the natural sugar production process, making sure no trees or other sources of pulp will be required.
"Our hope is not so much that we will be supplying U.S. companies with our organic products in these trays, but much more that U.S. packing companies will pick this up themselves," said Michael Wilde, the sustainability and communications manager for organic produce company Nature & More. "This way we can make a much bigger sustainable impact."
The company has been working with packaging suppliers for more than two years to better develop the sugar cane material, using the fiber-based paperboard to package and ship vine tomatoes, pears and cape gooseberries to start. This sugarcane material is produced by a Colombian company that is located nearby natural sugar cane fields. Some of these fields have been producing cane for more than a century. The material is also guaranteed to be oil-free and has no genetically-modified material.
This new packaging trend is already gaining acceptance and interest from several industry leaders. French supermarket chain Carrefour has already begun using the material.
"We encourage our suppliers to minimize the environmental footprint of packaging by focusing on recycling and working with renewable and waste materials," said Julie Mahmoun, product manager for Carrefour. "The Eosta/Nature & More sugar cane tray fits our philosophy and that is why we have selected it for our organic fruits and vegetables."
Preventing infection of chicken
Packaging Europe noted a second way in which companies are increasing the overall effectiveness of their packaging. To protect against the prospect of contamination in the supply chain, companies are improving the overall effectiveness of their trays and lidding films. The products come with build-in antimicrobial technology meant specifically to help reduce bacterial growth on outer packaging of meat.
One example, Addmaster's Biomaster antimicrobial technology, is based in silver and can be added into just about any packaging product. It's known to reduce growth of bacteria on packaging surfaces by nearly 100 percent.
"While the correct handling and preparation of food by consumers at home prevents contamination, our work with Addmaster is addressing concerns raised by our customers and is helping them to reduce the chances of bacterial growth on the outer packaging of fresh meat products in the stages between farm and fork," said Alan Davey, the director of innovation at LINPAC Packaging, which is working to improve the standards of packaging further.
These additives are also cost-effective and have no effect on food's taste or smell properties.
More detailed packaging attempts
In other cases, the developments seen in the market are less drastic, aiming only to improve the packaging details of any given company. According to Packaging Digest, these efforts can be as simple as redesigning packaging to better approach a market. Meat snacks maker World Kitchens in Minong, Wisconsin, recently refreshed its brand with new logos and more importantly, package design.
The company's largest packaging size was modified to better suit market expectations and to improve the packaging's overall appeal. The product window of the packaging was also modified into a curved shape from a square to allow the product to better flow and appeal to audience preferences.
