Importance of Food Packaging
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importance of food packaging

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Food packaging plays an important role in the safety and protection of food during its shelf life; its main purpose is to keep products in the best condition and keep it safe for consumption.

At the same time, packaging needs to maintain the flavour, shape and texture of the food.

Today, there are many options available for businesses to ensure their products are protected against environmental factors, as well as chemical or physical changes.

As technology advances, packaging materials for food are regularly being updated to meet consumer demands. People are busier now than ever before and packaged food is becoming increasingly popular due to it being easy to carry whilst on-the-go, easy to open, close and reuse.

So, manufacturers should experiment with different packaging options to improve the quality of their food, increase sales and reduce costs as well as waste.

Think about it, if food is packaged professionally, consumers are more likely to buy the product, as they perceive it to be in perfect condition; packaging affects buying decisions.

That said, here are 5 reasons why the right food packaging is important.

 

1. Improves Shelf Life

The right food packaging significantly increases the shelf life of a product.

On the other hand, poor or faulty packaging exposes food products to environmental factors that can cause health problems for the end consumer.

Whilst many people believe that preserving food at low temperatures will help to improve the shelf life of food products, this only plays a small part.

Rather, food will have a shorter shelf and begin to decompose if it is exposed to oxygen.

For this reason, food packaging needs to prevent the food’s exposure to air completely and thus, will help to make sure food stays fresh for longer.

 

2. Protects Food From Contamination

Regardless of where food is produced, be it locally or globally, food products are at risk of contamination from various pollutants and bacteria. 

However, food that is shipped or stored for longer periods of time is at an even higher risk of contamination.

Hence, food packaging is important to protect the end consumer and their health, as well as making sure food remains fresh during its shelf life.

As such, manufacturers must have quality control measures in place to ensure there are no faults in their packaging; for example, using package leak detectors and seal integrity testers.

 

3. Protects Food From Physical Damage

Sounds obvious, but food packaging protects the product from any physical damage.

However, it can’t just be any packaging - if it’s too weak or not properly sealed, the food won’t be fully protected from contaminants.

That said, food packaging needs to be sturdy to protect products from physical damages against shocks that could occur from handling, shipping and warehousing.

 

4. Maintains Freshness

With innovations in food packaging technology, it is now possible to send food products across different countries whilst still maintaining its freshness and quality.

And so, food manufacturers and processors are able to supply fresh food to end consumers no matter where they are, as the right packaging will preserve its shelf life.

Furthermore, these innovations have now set a new standard that consumers expect, regardless of where they order their food from; i.e. if they are based in the UK and have ordered food products from Italy, they can enjoy fresh food if it is packaged correctly.

 

5. Prevents Tampering

To ensure food safety, packaging needs to be made so that it cannot be tampered with; tampered food can damage a person’s health.

As such, food manufacturers should use tamper-evident labels that indicate whether the food has been dabbled with, which includes:

  • Printed features
  • Special packaging membranes
  • Breakaway closures
  • Other graphics that change due to tampering

Simply, the right food packaging can determine if the food has been damaged and prevent this from happening.

 

The Takeaway

Overall, packaging plays an important role when shipping, handling, and storing food, not to mention it ensures food safety.

And with modern lifestyles today, food packaging will have an effect on sales and buying behaviours as it directly involves appeal and convenience for consumers.

 

For more information, please get in touch today.

In the meantime, take a look at our full range of takeaway bags and boxes here.

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