Food Packaging

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Food Packaging
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What is food packaging?

• Enclosing food to protect food from tampering or
  contamination from
• physical,
• chemical, or
• biological sources.

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Six Functions of Packaging

• Barrier between food and contaminants.
• Protects food from impact during shipping and
  storage.
• Acts as a dispenser
• Protects food from moisture, gas, odors, and
  light
• Identifies the contents
• Serves as a cooking and storage container.

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Food Packaging Materials

• Metals (steel, tin, and aluminum) -- canned foods
• Glass -- beverages, pickles, condiments
• Paper (usually coated with wax, plastics, or
  aluminum foil) -- cartons of milk, crackers
• Plastics -- milk jugs, beverages, deli salads
• Packaging films (cellophane, edible films, and
  coatings) -- candy bars, hot dog casings, chips
• Laminates (layering materials into one product)
  -- drink boxes

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Packaging Types
D-9.02 Food Packaging
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Reduced oxygen packaging

• Some packaging methods involve changing the
  environment that surrounds food to increase the
  shelf life.
• Reduced oxygen packaging (ROP) provides an
  atmosphere that has little or no oxygen in the
  environment surround the food.  
• Three types of ROP are
• Controlled atmosphere packaging
• Modified atmosphere packaging
• Vacuum packaging

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Controlled Atmosphere Packaging

• Controls the movement of gases inside the
  package.
• Used with
• fresh-cut salads.

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Modified Atmosphere Packaging

• Flush the food container with a gas, CO2 or N2.,
  before the container is sealed
• Use with
• potato chips and other snack foods
• fresh pasta

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Vacuum Packaging

• Remove all air, including oxygen, from inside the
  packaging environment.
• Used with
• Country ham slices,
• deli meats,
• bacon

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Determination of what type of package to use

• The type of packaging material used with a
  specific food product depends on
• the function the package must perform
• the protection needed
• conditions of shipping and storage
• chemical composition of the food