Baking & Snack - November 2007 - 32

ENVIRONMENTAL EVALUATION

The

NEXT
Step
Are the baking and snack industries ready
for sustainable packaging?
BY ANNE GIESECKE, PH.D.
he answer to that question is, well
kind of, maybe, over time.
During the 1980s, environmentalists used bread bags as an example of environmentally sound packaging.
The bag represented minimal packaging
that could be easily opened and reclosed
and was often reused to send sandwiches
to schools. During the 1990s, bakers distinguished their products with double
wrapping. Customers responded well,
and packaging lost its minimalism.
Now we are in the next phase. Wal-Mart
and Tesco have sustainable packaging initiatives, so the market indicator is that
bakers and snack food makers should be
thinking about their future opportunities.
Packaging initiatives have two components - materials related to bakery operations such as ingredients coming into
the facility and waste leaving the facility
and the packaged baked product sent to
the retailer and purchased by the consumer. The elements of sustainable packaging apply to both and include source
reduction, recycled content, recyclability,
biodegradability and energy efficiency.
Source reduction refers to using as little
packaging as possible to protect and transport food. It saves energy; offers lighter,
less expensive transport; and produces less
waste. Recyclability and biodegradability
reduce waste and may save energy.
Packaging on the manufacturing side

34 / BAKING & SNACK / November 2007

advanced through the use of reusable totes
for a variety of minor ingredients. This produced savings for the ingredient supplier
and for the user. The baker does not have to
dispose of packaging, and cleaning the totes
is the responsibility of the supplier.
The use of paper and cardboard with
recycled content and the recycling of
paper and cardboard has taken costs
out of the waste stream. Also, inks used
on cartons and for date stamps have
improved. Nontoxic, water-based inks are
now available with no fumes or volatile
organic compounds, nonspill cartridges
and low-voltage requirements.
For the baker, packaging machines are
increasingly robotic and modular. The
equipment is flexible in package material
and size for bag, pouch and box. As recycling systems develop in communities
and households find it convenient to recycle, more recyclable packaging options
will be available to food processors.
The best packages are easy to open
and reclose, protect the food for safety
purposes and indicate allergens and
health-related information, and they have
positive social efforts.
Shape and size need to make sense for
the stability and storage of the product,
whether it is increasing shelf life at the
grocery store or in a vending machine.
To help meet this many-sided profile,
numerous choices are available for flex-

ible packaging - polyethylene, polyester,
polylactic acid (corn-based), etc. Also,
new packaging materials are being developed from nanoproducts, and advances
are being made in barrier films.
Evolving label technologies will provide new options, but management must
consider cost vs. benefit of these technologies. One example is the stick-on sensor label to detect the freshness levels of
perishable foods on the shelf. Another is
the use of radio frequency identification
technology for tracking purposes by you
or your supplier. In the future, we may
see a label that releases the aroma of the
baked food when you touch the package.
Adding to the packaging challenge is the
potential for reaction with new combinations of ingredients from around the world.
Resources are being developed to
address such chemistry issues. The Food
and Drug Administration has a document
posted on its Web site (www.fda.gov) titled,
"Guidance for Industry - Use of Recycled Plastics in Food Packaging: Chemistry Considerations." The migration of
materials into food, microbial contamination and structural integrity of recycled
plastic are discussed.
Perfect packaging should complement
the perfect product, being affordable,
safe, healthy and tasty. Success requires
skilled decisions about when and where
packaging costs can be cut.
Ⅲ

http://www.fda.gov

Baking & Snack - November 2007

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