5 Ways To Knows How Eco-friendly Packaging Is Useful For Food Products

 

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5 Ways To Knows How Eco-friendly Packaging Is Useful For Food Products

Eco-friendly packaging refers to the new forms of wrapping materials that are environmentally sustainable. Why do we need that? 
The answer is relatively simple: climate change. In the late 1970s, after some scientists discovered the harmful impact the industrial revolution had upon the world, a find that sparked interest amongst the public as well as other researchers. And with more research, more evidence, and more observation, we reached an inevitable conclusion.

The industry and the consumers needed to bring about radical changes in their production and consumption patterns to reduce their carbon footprints. On the one hand, the industry was booming, new products and innovations being made every day, life and living standards were rising globally, and the economy was thriving. But there was a cost to all that. And that was the environmental cost of our industrial development.

Sustainability and packaging

With growing environmental concerns, the manufacturers switched to "green packaging" to reduce the production of one of the most significant and most harmful pollutants on earth: plastic. Plastic packaging fills landfills, chokes the seas, and releases poisonous smoke if burned. And the fact that it does not decompose means that we are creating toxic waste for the centuries to come. Packaging like cardboard and other biodegradable materials became more frequent. There are several reasons why producers replaced plastic with these materials.

Firstly, these materials are made from natural products; for example, Kraft paper is made from pine, cardboard from wood pulp, and other containers made from sugarcane fibres, etc. they are fully bio-degradable. They do not pose a threat to nature. Fully recyclable and reusable, they are green to go.

From a producer's point of view, they are easy to mass-produce and do not require much manual labour or complicated machinery, keeping production costs low. They are also straightforward to store. Another critical factor is the fact that materials like cardboard are the perfect replacement for plastics in terms of customization ability, designing property, being printable, and being produced in any shape and size. Strength and durability that offer the product protection from environmental factors like rain, light, and other, as well as being shock absorbent to prevent damage to delicate items like electronics and glass, are all attributes that make them very suitable for use. Lightweight and compact, they allow shipping costs to be reduced significantly:

Amazon and Alibaba use this property to save millions of dollars every single year. Therefore, we see how cardboard boxes are, indeed, one of the best solutions to reduce the use of plastics wrapping materials.

Going green in the food industry

Food packaging is essential to get right. Being a perishable, i.e., likely to decay or go rancid quickly, we need to ensure that the wrapping material we use not only protects the edibles from physical and environmental damage but also increases its shelf life. 
We need sustainable packaging that can effectively help the product be safe and secure after production, in a warehouse, during transit, and on a retail shelf.

Companies like McDonald's, Nestle, and Anheuser-Busch, are taking the lead in introducing green food packaging. Here are five ways in which environment-friendly wrapping is beneficial:

• Food friendly:

it is common knowledge that plastic containers release harmful toxins and chemicals when heated. Pouring in hot soup, or microwaving a cup of instant noodles, increases your chances of getting cancer. Apart from that, the plastic coating often leads to contamination due to the chemicals coating it.

With materials like cardboard, you can be assured that they are natural, with a 70-100% organic composition. There is no chance or risk of food being affected by any harmful substances that come from the container. This is why we see an increasing amount of cardboard boxes being used by everyone, from a street-side vendor to pour hot chow-mien in, to Starbucks serving coffee.


• Efficient:

the main factor that makes it accessible is the fact that it does not allow any harm to the items. Brittle products like biscuits and spaghetti can be safely wrapped in these materials. They are multipurpose.

Protecting the commodity from heat and moisture, ensuring that it does not get damaged, retaining the flavour and texture, providing storage, helping in product display, and many more.


• Customizable:

the major attraction in using these packaging materials is the fact that they support the company to differentiate itself. For a producer, setting up the brand name is a top priority. The boxes in which the product is wrapped must, therefore, be easily moulded into different shapes and designs.

The food industry is one of the most competitive sectors and requires branding for a company to survive. This aspect helps the company to build up its image, and for the consumer to recognize the product on the shelf. Specific packet designs and prints have been used effectively by food giants like Coca Cola and Pepsi in their ad campaigns.


• Costs:

cardboard, Kraft paper, bamboo fibre sheets; all are reusable. The companies need to reduce production costs, and often reuse the same cartons. Cardboard and other such derivatives are bought on wholesale rates by the companies from scrapyards of other dealers.

Then they are processed and ready to be used again. This saves time, effort, and cost. From meat to electronics, we can find the industry reusing their packaging. Apart from that, they are cheap and easy to produce and reduce shipping costs.


• Environment:

We have already discussed how eco-friendly packaging helps the environment. Not only are the reusable and recyclable, the fact that they are bio-degradable means that it will not result in waste. Another aspect is the fact that switching to sustainable packets will appeal to the customers, which are growing increasingly conscious of the carbon footprints of the companies they buy from.

It will help you gain popularity amongst the market and boost sales. Therefore, we see how the food industry has accepted the responsibility of playing its part in reducing climate change by switching to green policies concerning the production and packaging of their products. These policies have not reduced revenues, but helped save costs, and should be implemented by all firms globally.

 

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