The packaging sector is an important global industry, representing about 2% of
the Gross National Product (GNP) of the developed countries. The value of the
packaging industry is about 345 million euros worldwide, of which Europe
represents a third. Fifty per cent of this market is packaging for food. Forecasts
suggest that the sector will continue to grow in size and importance.
Many cooking and preservation processes still largely depend on effective
packaging, for example canning, aseptic, sous vide and baking processes.
Processes such as drying and freezing would be lost without protective
packaging after processing to control product exposure to the effects of oxygen,
light, water vapour, bacterial and other contaminants. However, modern food
packaging no longer has just a passive role in protecting and marketing the
product. It increasingly has an active role in processing, preservation and in
retaining the safety and quality of foods throughout the distribution chain.
Indeed, packaging development has changed the preservation methods used for
food products. Ten to fifteen years ago all poultry products or industrially
prepared raw minced meat were sold as frozen. Nowadays, thanks to modified-
atmosphere packaging based on protective gases and novel gas-impermeable
packaging materials, they are mainly sold as chilled products. The modern
preparation and often international distribution of fresh-cut fruit and vegetables
for retail sale is also possible today because of respirable packaging films.
Nowadays packaging plays an increasingly important role in the whole food
chain ‘from the field to the consumer’s table’. As an example, many fresh
agricultural products such as berries and mushrooms are picked in the field or
the greenhouse directly into consumer packages and plastic or fibre-based trays.
The product is thus touched only once before it reaches the consumer. Another
example is ready-to-eat food and snack products which are packed in
1
Introduction
R. Ahvenainen, VTT Biotechnology, Finland
microwaveable trays which allow consumers to prepare the food immediately
and even serve as an eating dish.
Food packaging has developed strongly during recent years, mainly due to
increased demands on product safety, shelf-life extension, cost-efficiency,
environmental issues, and consumer convenience. In order to improve the
performance of packaging in meeting these varied demands, innovative
modified- and controlled-atmosphere packaging, and active and intelligent
packaging systems are being developed, tested and optimised in laboratories
around the world. All these novel packaging technologies have great
commercial potential to ensure the quality and safety of food with fewer or
no additives and preservatives, thus reducing food wastage, food poisoning and
allergic reactions. Intelligent packaging can also monitor product quality and
trace a product’s history through the critical points in the food supply chain. An
intelligent product quality control system thus enables more efficient
production, higher product quality and a reduced number of complaints from
retailers and consumers. Intelligent packaging will also give the food industry
the means to carry out in-house quality control required by food regulators.
This book covers selected trends and development in food packaging
technologies and materials aiming at assuring the safety and quality of
foodstuffs. In today’s competitive market optimal packages are a major
advantage when persuading consumers to buy a certain brand. Packaging has to
satisfy various requirements effectively and economically. The food
manufacturer’s objective is to design an optimised package which satisfies all
legislative, marketing and functional requirements sufficiently, and fulfils
environmental, cost and consumer demands as well as possible.
I hope that the book will be interesting to readers, and reach a wide market
amongst those working in research, industry or government, i.e., all those people
who should know new trends in food packaging and the possibilities they raise
to improve product safety and quality. In editing this book I would like to thank
all the contributors, many of whom I have known for several years. I appreciate
their willingness to share their expert knowledge and working within a tight
schedule. I also want to thank my colleagues at VTT Biotechnology for many
years of valuable cooperation and discussion and for helping to build such a
positive and creative environment.
2 Novel food packaging techniques
