For manufacturers of food products, packaging is just as important as pricing and marketing in achieving profitability and growth. Proper packaging protects your items, keeps the products fresh, and makes things such as transportation and handling easy. Additionally, good packaging goes a long way in boosting customer services, helps with personalization, and improves branding and visibility. Whether you’re packaging spiral noodles or fresh fruit, packaging is absolutely essential for your food products.
With this in mind, let’s look at some of the most common food packaging options you should consider;
Paperboard Boxes
Lightweight yet strong, paperboard is a paper-based material made by turning fibrous materials that come from wood and recycled waste paper into pulp, then bleaching it. The resulting material comes in many grades and can easily be cut and manipulated to create custom shapes and structures. The boxes, Solid Bleached Sulfate (SBS) paperboard in particular, can be used to pack a range of food products, including; milk, juices, and frozen foods among others.
For a sustainable option, some of the common ones are cardboard, brown paper, and corrugated bubble wrap. These options are biodegradable, made from recycled materials, and help reduce environmental impact. For more detailed information on sustainable packaging practices, visiting resources like dwinc.org can be useful.
2. Corrugated Boxes
Corrugated packaging boxes are essentially cardboard. They’re what goes into making those boxes that are used to pack large goods such as TVs for shipping round the globe. What most people don’t realize, however, is that these boxes come in many sizes and shapes and lower-strength types or regularly used to pack food items such as pizza delivery boxes. The boxes consist of three layers of paper; an outside liner, an inside liner, and a corrugated medium. This corrugated medium, also known as the fluting, is what gives the boxes their strength.
3. Plastic Boxes
Plastic box packaging has a number of advantages over other materials such as leather, glass, and paper including being recyclable and generally more durable. Airtight plastic containers can be used to preserve food quality and eliminate contamination issues. Also, boxes such as those from PTI plastic packaging don’t break easily and can therefore be used to pack foods that need to be stored under extreme conditions. Finally, clear plastic is excellent at showcasing products at any angle without necessarily opening the package!
4. Poly Bags
Also known as pouch bags or just plastic bags, poly bags are manufactured out of flexible, thin, plastic film fabric and are one of the most common types of packaging. They come with several advantages too. For instance, since plastic bags are structurally simple to make, they can be customized in design, size, and style without significantly affecting costs. They are also very durable, reusable, and flexible. Above all poly bags are often made with security features, tape attachments, carrying handles, and hanging holes to improve both handling and branding.
Bonus Option: Foil Sealed Bags
This type of packing is mostly seen in coffee and tea industries. Why? Because it maintains product density to retain flavor! Also, the foil sealing helps to protect the contents of the package from bacteria, thus enhancing shelf life. Other food products that are commonly packaged in foil sealed bags include nuts, cereals, smoked fish, cured meats, and cheese.
Now, Make Your Pick
Any of these packaging bags would be a good choice for your food products. Just remember to keep in mind the characteristics of the food item and external factors such as storage, shipping, and weather.
