January/February 2021 - 24

PMMI THE ASSOCIATION FOR PACKAGING AND PROCESSING TECHNOLOGIES
Packaging innovation to
prevent food waste
p a ck a gin g
When combined,
a n d
By Sean Riley
Senior Director,
Media & Industry
Communications
PMMI
unconsumed food
account for almost half
of the items landfilled
in the United States,
with some of these
discarded materials
c a u s i n g d o u bl e
damage as foodrelated
packaging and
containers, according to
the U.S. Environmental
Protection Agency (EPA).
Foodservice establishments generate
a significant amount of wasted food and
packaging, per the EPA, with between
four and 10% of food purchased by food
service operations in the U.S. thrown
out before reaching plates. By reducing
the amount of food and packaging
discarded,
these establishments
can significantly reduce their waste
stream and save money. To reduce food
reaching landfills, save money and
help communities, the EPA created a
Guide for Reducing Wasted Food and
Packaging.
The guide's first step in reducing
food waste is to measure and track
the amount, type of and reason
for the food and packaging being
discarded. Businesses and consumers
can accomplish this rather simply by
using a thorough food and packaging
assessment as a foundation for reduction
efforts. It is important to understand
more than just the quantity of total
waste generated in order to create
targeted and successful interventions
that reduce wasted food and packaging.
Information on the waste type (for
example, peppers or onions) and reason
for loss (for example, overpreparation
or spoilage) is important to make
meaningful changes. Additionally,
tracking when the material is generated
can also provide useful information to
target specific causes for wasted food
and packaging.
Source reduction, or waste prevention,
is the most effective way of reducing
the environmental impact of wasted
food and food packaging because it
prevents unneeded materials from ever
being created. Waste prevention saves
the most money by reducing purchasing
costs, handling costs and disposal fees.
As with wasted food, there are many
benefits to reducing the amount of
wasted packaging. First and foremost,
consumer packaged goods (CPGs)
companies can
lower costs by
employing strategies that allow less
packaging materials. For consumers,
buying food in larger quantities can
reduce the related packaging but is a
tricky application in practice as it can
also lead to food waste. This strategy
is particularly useful for condiments
Selling your surplus equipment? In the market for Quality Second
Hand food processing and packaging equipment?
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www.EquipmentButler.com
info@EquipmentButler.com
Tel: 360-844-9801
24 JANUARY/ FEBRUARY 2 021
and non-perishable food items such as
sugar, grains, oils, spices, etc.
A more passive change for minimizing
food waste in the short
term is a
simple printing change courtesy of the
Consumer Goods Forum (CGF). Led
by the CEOs of 50 major food brands,
including Nestlé, Kellogg, Walmart,
PepsiCo and Campbell Soup Company,
this network of 400 of the world's biggest
consumer goods companies, voted
unanimously in 2017 to standardize
expiration labels by 2021.
The new labels will eliminate
confusion by weaning off of terms
like " Sell by, " " Best before " and " Good
until. " Instead, food companies will
commit to a simple " Use by " date on
perishable foods and a " Best if used by "
statement to indicate food quality. This
simple change can be instituted at the
label level without anything more than
printing a few changed words.
New technologies, solutions and
education addressing the changing
landscape of food waste and food
packaging waste are abundant at PACK
EXPO Connects, a digital platform
produced by PMMI Media Group.
Equipment demos, educational content
and valuable industry insights are
accessible to view at your convenience
until March 31, 2021.
Offering vetted suppliers, PACK
EXPO Connects is an easily searchable
marketplace of over 700 leading
solution providers in a diverse range of
industries, serving as a resource for the
most advanced packaging innovations.
For more information and to access the
solutions, visit packexpoconnects.com.
Next up in the PACK EXPO Portfolio of
Trade Shows is EXPO PACK México (June
8-11, 2021), followed by PACK EXPO
Las Vegas and Healthcare Packaging
EXPO (Sept. 27-29, 2021). More details
to follow in the coming months. In the
meantime, for more information, visit
www.packexpo.com.
http://www.packexpoconnects.com http://www.EquipmentButler.com http://www.packexpo.com
January/February 2021

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of January/February 2021
