The packaging of modern frozen food has advanced significantly, mainly due to the contribution of plastic packaging. From frozen gourmet food, ready-to-eat meals, to frozen fruits and vegetables, and delectable ice creams, we can pick them up from the store and enjoy them, without worrying about food spoilage. All thanks to plastic packaging.
But did you also know that lightweight, flexible, and thin plastic packaging also yields less food and packaging waste? One of the reasons is that plastic packaging helps preserve freshness.
Let us explore many other reasons as to how plastic packaging helps mitigate wastage.
1) Airtight Freezer Foods
Food that is stored in the freezer without proper packaging can easily absorb odors, flavors, and then dry out. This results in the spoilage and wastage of food. Plastic packaging bags and containers can help preserve the nutrients, texture, and flavors of the food. It does so by preventing outside air from entering. Due to thin, lightweight plastic packaging, we can enjoy our food without worrying about getting spoilt.
2) Active Packaging
Also known as smart or intelligent packaging, active packaging can help protect frozen and fresh food by doing just more than just containing it. For instance, antimicrobials can be integrated into plastic packaging. This can help reduce the growth of bacteria and harmful microorganisms that degrade the quality of food.
3) Plastic Steamer Bags
Frozen food brands are now starting to see dishes in lightweight plastic pouches that are specially designed to be heated in a microwave. All consumers have to do is place the frozen food package in the microwave, and the steam that is generated ends up heating the food within the pouch. Plastic steamer bags require little cleanup and no food preparation.
4) Do-it-Ourselves Frozen Foods
Today’s consumer uses plastic packaging such as zipper bags to pack their store-bought food, homemade food, and leftovers. To ensure zero food waste, many of them remove air from the plastic bag before freezing. They do this via home vacuum sealers. This technique of sealing is a common practice among warehouse store shoppers and is quite similar to factory sealed packaging. However, this technique is only possible due to lightweight plastic packaging bags that mitigate air exposure to the food. This reduces spoilage and significantly improves the shelf life.
5) Recycled Plastic Packaging
Due to the latest recycling technologies, many frozen food manufacturers use recycled plastic packaging. Many of them use plastics packaging that is made from plastic bottles that are recycled from the waste stream. This results in less land pollution.
These advances could be known to many of us. However, we also need to consider how plastic packaging protects a huge bulk of frozen food during transportation and a large amount of food that is sold in institutions, hotels, and restaurants. These are the other areas where food wastage is reduced due to plastic packaging.
In conclusion, there is no doubt that plastic packaging allows us to store different kinds of food for a long period of time, thereby causing less food and packaging waste.
