Food Packaging Manufacturers Are Seeking Ways to Tackle Food Wastage Problem

The packaged food industry has taken giant strides forward in the last few years. The industry has grown owing to factors such as easy cooking, consumption, handling, and protection from external tampering and meddling. Health awareness programs along with convenience of consumption are instrumental is driving the packaged food market worldwide. A market research report published by Allied Market Research offers key market insights such as the markets share, size, and growth. The aim of leading market players is to package food in an efficient and in a cost-effective manner. It is important for major manufacturers to maintain the quality of the food that is packaged without affecting the packaged product. Government regulations governing the packaged food industry have implemented strict food safety regulations to ensure safe and laboratory tested food packaging processes are in practice.

Get a detailed Research in Packaged Food Industry at: https://www.alliedmarketresearch.com/packaged-food-market

3D Printing in Beverage and Retail Packaging

When the 3D printing technology surfaced, industry experts believed that the technology could potentially be a great opportunity to move away from conventional manufacturing processes, the time constraints associated with traditional manufacturing processes urged the need to seek alternate manufacturing and packaging techniques. 3D printing is used in a wide range of applications in different industrial sectors such aerospace, defense, and healthcare. The latest industry to make use of the 3D printing technology is the beverage and retail packaging industry.

The use of 3D printers is gradually picking up in the food packaging industry. Vice president and 3D printing expert, Paul Pavolich revealed how the food packaging industry can use rapid prototyping as a bargaining chip to develop prototypes at a quick pace. It is crucial to understand the functionalities of 3D printers and to identify the right tool for the right job. The basic 3D printers are apt for simple prototypes. However, high quality commercial 3D printers are capable of creating prototypes that are so realistic, even the customers can’t differentiate between the real product and the printed prototype. The food and beverage packaging industry requires quick and efficient methods to create prototypes.

Figure 1. 3D Printed Bottle Prototypes

(Image Source: https://3dprint.com/103212/3d-print-prototype-packaging/)

Packaging has become an important part of marketing a product in modern times. 3D printing has been identified as the most reliable alternative to traditional manufacturing processes as it is cost-effective and time-efficient. The technology not only saves time and money, but also has a strong impact on marketing or the product. 3D printing is slowly making its way into the product development cycle of many leading manufacturers such as Heinz and Kraft Foods Group, Inc.

Technology to increase shelf life of packaged foods

The shelf life of a product is one of the important factors consumers and customers keep in mind especially while buying consumable goods. Food manufacturers have realized the need to produce products with a healthy shelf life.

Performance Packaging, introduced a new technology termed as Air shield technology that will extend the shelf life of packaged foods by chemically eliminating oxygen from dairy food packaging. Rob Reinders, Performance Packaging, president, revealed that dairy foods such as cheese, butter, processed dairy foods are sensitive to oxygen and the new technology will help solve this problem by removing oxygen and improve color, flavor, and nutrition to enhance the shelf life of dairy products.

Figure 2. Packaging pouches with Air Shield technology

(Image Source: http://www.dairyreporter.com/Processing-Packaging/New-Airshield-technology-to-up-shelf-life-of-packaged-dairy)

The Air shield technology not only removes oxygen but also creates an oxygen barrier which improves the shelf life of the dairy products. Removal of oxygen involves two chemical reactions. It eliminates the need to utilize excess packaging components such as aluminum foil, EVOH additive and aluminum oxide coating. This makes the entire process cost-effective for food processors and packaging companies. Convenience, quality, sustainability and pricing of the entire process majorly drives the food packaging industry. The Air shield technology will be implemented in food packaged in pouches as food packed in pouches has gained popularity amongst consumers owing to its convenience and portability.

Food packaging industry to solve food wastage problem

In modern times, wastage of food is considered to be a major environmental and economic issue. Figures disclosed by United Nation’s Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), reveal that one-third of the food produced for human consumption is wasted or lost. Loss of food often occurs during the production stages such as harvesting, transportation, and storage of food. Wastage of food also has an impact on the environment. As much as 3.3 billion tons of greenhouse gases is added to the earth’s atmosphere due to wastage of food.

Countries and leading manufactures have set up goals and are aiming to tackle this problem. The European Union is aiming to reduce food waste by 30% by 2025. France, became the first country to ban supermarkets from disposing unsold food and donating it to charity and food banks. The food packaging industry has also joined hands with nations worldwide to curb the problem of food wastage.

By seeking new ways to protect food, majority of the food wastage problem is solved instantly. Produce items such as fruits and vegetables are easily vulnerable. Today, produce items are packed in such as way so as to reduce wastage and maintain the quality of the product. Food packaging is also helping in improving the shelf life of the products. Packaging techniques such as modified atmosphere packaging (MAP) also contribute to reduce wastage of food.

The food packaging industry is set to grow in the near future as the need to stop food wastage has gained popularity. The impact on the environment due to food wastage is noticeable and leading manufacturers such as Nestle, Kraft Foods Group, Inc., and Tyson Food, Inc. are focusing on improved and cost-effective packaging. The 3D printing technology has also been a vital factor to boost the growth of the food packaging market worldwide.

By - https://www.alliedmarketresearch.com