Green packaging: what it is and what it provides

The right packaging to best preserve fruit and vegetables. In this article, we will explore the best practices to optimally store fruit and vegetables, protecting them from spoilage, waste, and nutrient loss. We will discover ideal materials and strategies for effective storage that will allow you to enjoy nature's products to the fullest. Read also: “Food packaging: 7 tips for choosing the most suitable solution for you” The right packaging for fruit and vegetables The importance of suitable packaging to best preserve fruit and vegetables is fundamental to guarantee product freshness, quality, and safety during transport and storage. Here are a few reasons why proper packaging is essential: Prolongs freshness: it helps reduce product interaction with air, moisture, and light—factors that contribute to the rapid deterioration of fruit and vegetables. This helps preserve the product's flavor, texture, and nutrients for longer; Reduces waste: it shields fruit and vegetables from mechanical damage and impacts during transport and handling. By minimizing damage and losses, food waste is significantly reduced; Prevents contamination: secure and hygienic packaging helps prevent contamination from external agents such as bacteria and other pathogens. This is especially vital for delicate items like leafy greens; Optimal moisture retention: some produce requires specific humidity levels to maintain freshness. The right packaging can help regulate internal moisture, preventing mold formation or product dehydration; Facilitates selection and identification: well-designed, clear packaging allows consumers to see the product without opening it, making selection and identification of desired items much easier; Environmental responsibility: reduces environmental impact and contributes to better waste management. Using recyclable or biodegradable materials helps cut down on pollution and plastic waste; Seasonal preservation: extends the availability of out-of-season fruit and vegetables, allowing produce to be imported and safely stored for longer periods; Promotes brand and product identity: eye-catching and well-structured packaging can help promote the product and increase its market visibility. Let us now discover the key tips for designing and manufacturing the perfect packaging for fruit and vegetables. Choosing the right materials Corrugated cardboard offers an excellent solution for preserving the freshness and presentation of fruit and vegetables. The multi-flute structure of the cardboard provides high protection against shocks and mechanical stress during transport and handling. The flutes absorb impacts, reducing the risk of damage. It is also a lightweight material, making it easy to handle and reducing the overall weight of the parcel, a beneficial factor for long-distance shipments as it can lower freight costs. The choice of corrugated cardboard type depends mainly on the kind of fruit and vegetables you want to pack and your storage requirements. For delicate or pressure-sensitive fruits, like strawberries or raspberries, it is recommended to use a thinner corrugated cardboard to reduce pressure on them; for hardier fruits like apples, you can opt for a thicker corrugated cardboard for greater protection. Furthermore, the packaging must feature: Suitable dimensions: the box must be spacious enough to contain the desired amount of fruit to avoid crushing during transit; Internal compartments: to prevent collision between fruits, keep them stable, and maintain their integrity; Breathability: the corrugated cardboard packaging must allow good air circulation. Breathability is particularly crucial for certain fruit varieties that require greater aeration to stay fresh. Storing at proper temperatures Some items require a cold environment, while others thrive at higher temperatures. Here are some general guidelines: Refrigerator: most vegetables should be stored in the bottom crisper drawer of the fridge, where the temperature is slightly higher and humidity can be regulated. More delicate fruit should be placed on the upper shelves, where the temperature is more constant; Control humidity: some refrigerators feature a dedicated drawer with humidity control for leafy greens. This helps maintain moisture at the optimal level to prolong freshness; Bananas and citrus fruits: oranges and lemons as well as bananas can be stored at room temperature, as the cold can alter their flavor and texture. Separating ripe produce from unripe produce Ripe produce releases ethylene gas, a plant hormone that accelerates the ripening of other items around it. This can lead to faster decay and waste. Therefore, it is best to store ripe produce separately from unripe products. Regularly checking storage status To avoid waste and ensure freshness, it is essential to regularly check the storage status of fruit and vegetables. Promptly discard any moldy, bruised, or decaying produce to prevent it from damaging the rest. By using appropriate packaging and following correct storage practices, you can keep fruit and vegetables fresh and tasty for longer. Always remember that proper storage not only improves food quality but is also a sustainable choice for the planet, helping to reduce environmental impact. Choose Cart-One for your fruit and vegetable packaging. Cart-One serves as a dynamic and flexible partner capable of providing a constantly updated range of proven high-quality paper-based packaging solutions. Contact us for more information, we are completely at your disposal. See also: “How to find the best packaging for your product”

It has been exactly two years since the Alliance and its members were FFP certified. A lot has changed in that time. More than a year on from the start of the pandemic, there has been a seismic shift in ecommerce packaging that no-one could have predicted. Here, we will look at the key trends and impacts that were released at the last E-pack Europe event. Ecommerce business – adding complexity in the customer journey Before addressing the current situation, it is important to look at the background and evolution of ecommerce business and examine the key features. Digitisation has led to more complexity during the customer journey, multiplying potential touchpoints and creating a new distribution channel – ecommerce. The Internet has changed how we decide what to buy. In a physical shop, we are more governed by impulse and visual stimulation. Online, there are more variables, and research plays a much bigger role in purchase decisions. Google coined the term Zero Moment of Truth, or ZMOT, to describe the part of the buying process when the consumer researches a product prior to purchase. After that, there are multiple further “moments of truth” that move a consumer closer to buying: In this journey, ecommerce packaging plays a substantial role, since it is replacing the First Moment of Truth where a consumer sees a product for the first time. As such, it becomes one of the key brand assets, and box design is one of the success factors that we will explore later in this piece.  Ecommerce packaging  the challenges in supply and value chains  Every manufactured product can travel across many paths. The challenge is to understand and tackle where the value is.  The way a product is transported is very different for online channels than for standard ‘bricks & mortar’ distribution channels. For ecommerce purchases, each parcel can be handled up to 20 times more often! This means box design for ecommerce packaging solutions is considerably more complicated than the traditional retail model: Ecommerce business – the pandemic and the forecast of the “next normal” On 21st Jan 2021, at the all-digital CES (Consumer Electronic Show) 2021, a study revealed that COVID-19 increased ecommerce business by the equivalent of 10 years in just 8 weeks. The global ecommerce packaging market is currently estimated at $43.1 billion. With a 12% CAGR projected value, it could reach $75.1 billion by 2025 (Source Smithers Pira). All consumer packaged goods (PCG) segments were significantly impacted by the changes in consumer habits brought by COVID-19: At the E-pack Europe event in December, Google’s Miguel M. Avalos (Head of Commerce Product Marketing & Digital Acceleration Program), discussed some of the major search trends of the last year: ecommerce vs. physical – huge acceleration of ecommerce but we can expect a move back to “brick & mortar” retail as the effects of the pandemic recede   brand vs. marketplace – increase in owned ecommerce to allow better brand experience  curation vs. endless aisle – ‘endless aisle’ refers to the concept of enabling customers in the stores to virtually browse or order a wide range of products that are either out of stock or not sold in-store and have them shipped to the store or their home. During the pandemic, curation increased which allowed niche offering more than mass-offers   privacy vs. personalisation – while personalisation was a key trend and brought value to the customer, it has shifted to more “local” search in order to support business continuity close to people’s location  Nowadays, we can raise the following question: will this unprecedented growth in ecommerce sectors continue beyond the pandemic? Predictions of what the “next normal” will look like show some megatrends for the future. These will have to be integrated into the next ecommerce packaging and box design initiatives.  Ecommerce business –main stakeholder profiles and expectations  At the E-pack Europe event, moderator Jim Chrzan (VP Content and Brand Strategy at PMMI Media Group) made some interesting observations in his opening remarks: 75% of brand manufacturers are making changes to the secondary packaging   40% of brand manufacturers are considering changes to the primary pack  We also need to consider that the term ‘ecommerce packaging’ has different meaning for the three profiles in the value chain: E-consumer  Focus on unboxing and Ultimate Moment Of Truth as “wow” effect  Re–think secondary packaging as primary packaging  E-retailer/Logistician  Increase fulfilment efficiency  Reduce incidence of shipment damage  Minimise waste  Brand owner  Meet e-consumer and e-retailer requirements  Include smart packaging solutions  Increase omnichannel solutions  The trigger is to align interest on primary, secondary, and tertiary packaging so that brands are not affected and customers are not disappointed. As well as the logistics functionalities (containing, preserving and protecting) and information vehicle (branding, usage and promotion), box design should integrate new “must-have” attributes: Sustainability first  All around Europe, studies are aligned. As an example, a recent French study revealed: 98% of the population wants ecommerce packaging that will protect the product(s) from any damage  92% is concerned that the right volume of packaging should be used to reduce waste  89% demand recyclable packaging – knowing that mono-material box designs help to increase the recycle rate  85% wish to have reusable packaging options These figures can be extrapolated to any European country. Design for ecommerce business The success factors for a smooth, homogenous and omnichannel experience have to be identified and implemented according to the needs of all the various stakeholders. There are many factors to consider when it comes to ecommerce packaging. Optimising packaging design for brand owners, e-retailers and end consumers is now more important than ever. They can be sum-up in 8 criteria: Protection and security of your product(s): Ecommerce packaging has to be fit to size, securely closed and tested with dedicated methods. It will prevent damage and also thefts thanks to temper evidence. Easiness to erect and fill: To optimise efficiency and speed at the e-retailers Reclosing and reducing the environmental impact: box design should include “easy to return” features that allow reuse of the box – therefore enhancing its life cycle Optimisation: The entire ecommerce supply chain should be rethought and optimised to minimise void shipment – it is about moving from a palletisation logic to a “parcel” logic Ship-ready branded opportunity: Omnichannel options help merging primary and secondary ecommerce packaging, allowing brands to have a new territory to express their assets Increasing and facilitating the unboxing experience: For brand owners and brands born on the Internet – so called Digital Native Vertical Brands (DNVB) – the differentiating criteria will be in a box design with a great consumer experience Even though most of these elements are not new, tomorrow’s ecommerce packaging winners will be the ones that have identified these opportunities, with the upcoming increase of track and trace / smart ecommerce solutions. The success factors will be in working with a holistic approach to meet the demands of each stakeholders.

Redefining your corporate image can help give loyal customers a new experience, which can also be compatible with reaching new niches of public. Nowadays, sustainability policies are fundamental, as consumers are more attentive to issues concerning the production chains and the aspects concerning the packaging of the item they purchase. Is it sustainable? Is it easily recyclable? Is it reusable? These are some of the questions the user asks himself when faced with packaging. Let's see some examples that have made it possible to redefine the corporate image through experiences focused on sustainability. Sustainability as a communication strategy Presenting itself as a company that favors sustainable processes certainly helps to build a more ethical image and at the same time responsible for working conditions. In fact, sustainability does not only mean limiting environmental impacts, but also having a positive impact with one's business on the social communities involved in the production process. Sustainability has now become central to corporate communication. There are more and more cases of brands, such as in the rice supply chain, which reinvent packaging starting from waste. Other companies, on the other hand, work to reduce the use of plastic, such as for example in delivery. Circular economy and sustainability: protagonists at the Milano Marketing Festival 2021 The themes of the circular economy and corporate sustainability were the main concepts of the opening works of the third day of the Milan Marketing Festival 2021, an event organized by Class Editori, visible on ClassCnbc and on official channels. During the event, the players in the sector, from food companies to cosmetic product production companies and representatives of companies specialized in the production of packaging, told about their experience regarding the impact of the sustainability choices made. on sales and customer perception. In this sense we can mention Emanuele Preve, managing director of Riso Gallo, who told of how the company started from the selection of the raw material coming exclusively from certified agriculture, and how the next step was working on the packaging through the reduction of impact of the packaging starting from the cardboard up to the recycled plastic necessary for the creation of the vacuum packaging. This process proved the company right, which saw a positive response from the market. Consumer and packaging: the levers that can promote the purchase. The vision of the packaging, the tactile experience and the deepening through the reading of the label are crucial moments in the purchasing process. Why is a product discarded? Probably because the buyer did not recognize himself in the values ​​of the brand, which is represented at that moment by the packaging itself. A wrong product dress can decree a failure in sales, because it does not reflect the new ideals and new characteristics of the modern consumer: more informed, more attentive and more aware of the entire path that leads a product from the shelf to the online showcase. For companies operating with a real production sustainability project, it is also necessary to defend themselves from competitors who boast a purely formal adherence to the ethical principles of the circular economy. Company policies communicated through its official channels must necessarily be followed by consistent action. In this sense, not only recyclable packaging is enough, but it is necessary that the raw material used has been, in turn, completely or in part, recovered, and that the production phases impact as little as possible in terms of polluting emissions. It is necessary to have certifications that can attest to the quality of production processes, in order to obtain greater credit towards consumers. Policies regarding personnel management must be respectful of the dignity of the worker. We need to promote activities and messages aimed at raising consumer awareness. In this sense, all these aspects decree a sustainable approach. CART-ONE is engaged at the forefront in the production of corrugated cardboard packaging for companies and e-commerce. We have activated production cycles that reduce the environmental impact and only use certified raw materials from responsibly managed natural resources, as well as having implemented a recovery policy for processing waste so that nothing is wasted. For personalized advice, contact CART-ONE and find out how to make the packaging for your product in a sustainable and ecological way.