Edible Food Packaging will Prevent Waste in the Future
Edible food packaging might sound futuristic, but the trend is growing strong over the years and many cartoning machines are now made to be eco-friendly and even produce edible wrappers.
But, is this new trend viable and the best option when it comes to waste in the future?
Keep on reading to find out all the fascinating facts about the packaging industry and what the edible package can bring to the table. One thing is for sure, an efficient packaging strategy improves the bottom line.
What Is Edible Food Packaging?
Case packing machinery employs edible materials to create consumable packets for transporting and preserving food. Case packaging has been around for quite some time, ensuring the food we consume is protected from the environment, bacteria and safely arrives at its destination.
But, what if you could eat the package?
It's an intriguing concept that's sweeping the packaging business. Given the amount of waste generated by typical packaging, inventive alternatives that are biodegradable or even edible are much appreciated.
Types of Edible Food Packaging
There are many case packer manufacturers on the market and some of them are pushing the limits with new inventions. Companies are increasingly looking for innovative alternatives to plastic and carton packaging and designing various natural wraps for common things with the goal of protecting nature in mind.
Here are a couple of examples:
1. Ice-cream
A well-known treat is traditionally served in cones, which might be one of the prototypes of edible packaging. This way the consumer can enjoy the refreshing treat and eat the delicious package reducing waste.
2. Coffee
With a similar idea in mind, some companies that have cartoning equipment decided to try and make the coffee cups out of edible materials. Imagine a hard cookie lined with chocolate to carry your hot coffee safely and have a treat when you are finished drinking.
3. Gelatin Cups
Investing in gelatin cups is another eco-friendly option to store your beverages. That's just another product designed to replace paper cups and, more importantly, plastic cups, which generate the greatest pollution.
Cups made out of gelatin come in different flavors and add that unique look to every occasion.
4. Milk Protein Wraps
Imagine a wrap-around case packer but with edible materials like milk proteins.
Sounds futuristic, but this technology is being used all around the world as a solution to plastic wraps. They function and look a lot like a classic plastic wrap with the exception that they are completely safe to eat and biodegradable.
Product handling with edible wraps might be limited, but with enough instructions and practice, this can become a better practice in the future.
5. Fruit Casing
A few companies include this raw packaging in their production. Fruit casing is placed around edible products and peeled off just like you would fruit skin. It’s even possible to mimic the bag packaging and place products like yogurt inside these fruit casings.
Edible Food Packaging Pros and Cons
World without plastic would be great, but is the industry evolved enough to completely replace every packaging with edible ones? Here are a few reasons why this choice is excellent and a few reasons why it isn't.
1. Edible Food Packaging Pros
- Reduction of plastic waste;
- No need for recycling;
- Preserves food;
- Can be used as compost;
2. Edible Food Packaging Cons
- Water soluble and unstable;
- Not sanitary enough for raw product handling;
- Still requires additional packaging;
- Food alergies;
- Consumer expectations and habits.
What Is the Future of Packaging?
While it might sound amazing that all products come in edible packaging, it’s still not a realistic option for many reasons. The technology is yet to be developed to withstand the humidity, transport, and other factors that might influence the quality of the products.
To be on the safe side, companies are still employing trustworthy cartoning machinery which can make amazing packages and be environment-friendly at the same time.
Food packaging is incredible responsibility considering you need to think about:
- Quality
- Quantity
- Sustainability
- End product
When choosing the best way to pack any product you need to think about the customer, their safety, and convenience first.
This is why edible food packaging sounds better in theory than in practice.
Packaging Automation For Your Business
Whether you are choosing the right package for your product or want to invest in a complete tray packing machine you need to consider all the factors that might influence your decision. High-quality products demand a package of equal quality so make sure to choose only the best options for your business.
You can be eco-friendly even if you don’t use edible packaging, here is how:
1. Choose Eco-friendly Materials
Plastic is the number one pollutant in the world, so many companies choose to go with eco-friendly options like wood pulp which can be incorporated into wrap-around packaging reducing waste.
2. Repurpose Packaging
Even if you need to use carton packaging make sure that it can be multifunctional and used multiple times before it’s discarded. This way you will increase the lifespan of the product and help the global waste reduction.
Some food products like pizza, tortillas, and even cereal need to be packed in boxes that will protect the product and prevent stale taste. But, on the other hand, some cosmetics and personal care items need plastic containers to be safely transported and used.
This means that choosing the right product and package for your company depends on the type and size of the item you are looking to pack.
Final Thoughts
Edible food packaging is relatively new technology that needs time to be fully developed and used worldwide. In the meantime there are some amazing eco-friendly packing solutions for almost all industries.
So, depending on the product you are trying to promote as well as the consumer needs you can choose one of many high-quality automatic cartoning machine and complete the production.
