Tony Corbin considers what changes 2022 will bring for packaging in the chilled and frozen food aisles as ongoing and new trends influence brands and consumers

There are many new factors to consider for the chilled and frozen food markets and packaging in 2022. The sustainability concerns of consumers are still key, but that conversation has extended beyond packaging materials and includes food waste reduction (nothing new to those working in the industry) and an increased demand for plant-based food products, for both health and environmental reasons, among other things.

Retailers and producers will also be mindful of concerns over the rising cost of living. Iceland is certainly one, having vowed to freeze the price of more than 60 of its £1 value lines to ease the cost-of-living crunch piling pressure on its customers. The supermarket is also continuing its drive to reduce plastic, launching a series of new packaging trials in October that will result in a reduction of plastic of 36.6 tonnes across nine products.

Frozen vegetables and herbs including garlic, coriander, ginger and chilli will now be packaged in cartons. Iceland’s Soured Cream & Chive Dip and Sweet Chilli Houmous are now packaged in paperboard pots and the supermarket’s frozen 25pk Chicken Dippers and Chicken Popsters are packaged in first to market innovative paper laminate bags.

Iceland’s frozen Easy Peel Wild Red Shrimp will be packed in a coated paper bag replacing the old packaging, described as a “truly ground-breaking innovation” for frozen food.

At the time of the launch Richard Walker, managing director of Iceland, said the plastic-free journey could be easier if the government set “more aggressive, mandatory plastic reduction targets as a framework for business to operate within”.

So, tackling plastic waste, an issue that has resonated widely over the last few years, continues to be an important goal and major retailers are actively working towards the targets they have set. However, with more attention being paid to the effect of food waste on climate change, it’s worth repeating the benefits of plastic in this area, as unfashionable as that might be.

Modified Atmosphere Packaging (MAP), utilising plastic, certainly plays a role in delivering food waste prevention benefits and there’s currently plenty of innovation in this field.

“MAP is widely recognised as an effective technology proven to extend the shelf life of packaged foods and reduce food waste,” explains Neil Hansford, food packaging and cryogenic freezing expert at Air Products.

“MAP uses a specific single gas or a combination of gases (either nitrogen, oxygen and/or carbon dioxide) to create a protective atmosphere around the food to keep it fresher for longer. However, it is commonly used in combination with plastic packaging materials. This Catch-22 situation means food producers face the challenge of reducing single use plastics, while tackling food waste.

“So effective has plastic been in food waste reduction, the ongoing creation of alternative materials to match its properties is a mammoth task.

“We’re now seeing some food producers moving towards alternative plastics – also compatible with MAP – to reduce their use of virgin materials. This is a positive step, however the availability of food grade recycled plastics remains an issue, as does the use of single-use plastics.

“Producers need to review their options and consider each factor in the context of others. Our online calculator is helping customers to do that by analysing which packaging presents the best solution – to minimise food waste and reduce the carbon footprint– whether that’s MAP, packaging in air or none at all.

“So, if food producers are choosing – or need – to use plastic packaging, MAP can be used to preserve the food’s taste, safety and appearance, whilst helping to tackle food waste.”

Also using MAP is European thermoforming packaging specialist Waddington Europe, a division of Novolex, with its recently introduced recyclable tray for meat, fish and poultry products.

The container, called Piranha, is sealed using a series of raised teeth that run around the sealing flange instead of applying a layer of polyethylene or adhesive, which are typically used to seal the lid of MAP. The raised teeth maintain the seal’s integrity even if the flange becomes contaminated by animal fat, which can interfere with closure on traditional packaging for meat, fish and poultry (MFP) products.

As a mono-material package, the tray is capable of being fully recycled. Piranha can also be made with up to 100% recycled PET (rPET) and is said to be Plastic Tax compliant in the UK.

While many say we can’t recycle our way out of this problem, widespread plastic recycling can play a crucial part in tackling it.

“We are always trying to find innovative ways to reduce our carbon footprint and promote circularity, as well as help our customers and their consumers do the same,” said Eduardo Gomes, managing director of Waddington Europe. “Our packaging development team has really hit the mark with Piranha, enabling us to optimise the use of recycled content and provide a product that’s capable of being easily recycled back into food-grade rPET.”

The recent Christmas holiday will have undoubtedly been a period where food waste, domestically, will have increased. It saw a timely introduction from specialist flexible packaging provider Parkside of a reclosable pack for a range of Asda festive mini sausage rolls, developed in collaboration with premium producer of chilled savoury products c.

The pack, created by Parkside, is a PET tray and lid solution with a heat-seal lidding film laminate and built-in reclose technology. Alongside being 100% recyclable, the pack also delivers improved barrier performance to keep products fresher for longer.

“As an industry, we must be acutely aware of the growing issue of food waste,” says Alexandra Maudsley, project manager at Addo Food Group. “We need to create innovative packaging solutions that enable consumers to reduce waste figures by keeping their products fresher for longer.”

The innovative reclose feature from Parkside supports consumer efforts to reduce waste by retaining moisture within the pack and avoiding products from drying out after opening. It also enables the consumer to avoid using additional plastics, such as cling film, to protect food once opened.

“As a business, we pride ourselves on being innovators and industry leaders in the chilled savoury pastry market,” says Maudsley. “We work tirelessly to understand the needs of our customers and, by developing this sustainable pack with Parkside, we know that this new pack functionality delivers longer-lasting products for greater consumer convenience and food waste reduction.”

Staci Bye, new business development manager at Parkside, adds: “We were extremely pleased to help the brand achieve an innovative pack solution without compromise. It is sustainable while addressing heightened consumer demand for everyday convenience.”

Communicating information to today’s clued up consumer is a focus for Mash Direct. The award-winning ‘field-to-fork’ vegetable accompaniments brand, has partnered with non-profit organisation Foundation Earth (www.foundation-earth.org) to launch a new line of ecological packaging, designed to allow consumers to easily make more sustainable choices whilst shopping.

The packaging displays a traffic light system of how ecologically sustainable the product is and gives an overall ‘grade’ to provide an at-a-glance score.

The Foundation Earth product grading scores will initially be shown on five SKUs: Mash Direct’s Mashed Potato, Champ, Carrots & Parsnips, Mashed Turnip/Swede and Colcannon/Bubble and Squeak. The brand aims to roll out the packaging to other products this year, as part of the company’s wider sustainability ambitions.

The scoring system is uniquely designed to analyse the whole life-cycle of an individual product, such as Mashed Potato, as opposed to using secondary data to estimate the environmental impact of an entire product group. This will allow customers to directly compare the sustainable credentials of two competitor products to make an informed decision whilst they do their grocery shopping.

Health and environmentally conscious consumers will have noticed a huge rise in plant-based protein food products appearing in stores. Those seeking out such food types are almost certainly going to be mindful of the product packaging.

In some cases this does appear to bring it back to plastic as the villain of the piece but if plastic is not necessary, such as products for which food waste prevention is less of an issue, then it can surely only be seen as a progressive move.

Last August Meatless Farm launched its first ever chicken product into 300 Tesco stores. The Chicken Breast packaging trays are fully recyclable and sleeves are made from virgin board that is sustainably sourced and replanted.

More recently, Swedish plant-based food producer Oumph! announced that it has replaced plastic with recyclable cardboard packaging.

“Our food is a progressive choice and we wanted the packaging to match that. With our new recyclable packaging the aim is to further limit our environmental impact”, says Linda Arnason, global brand manager at Oumph! which is one of the LIVEKINDLY Collective’s brands.

“There are certain challenges in creating a more sustainable packaging for frozen food, and we are pleased to announce that we’ve found a solution with recyclable cardboard packaging. Not only is it better for the environment, but we’re also receiving positive feedback from retailers because the packaging is easy to stack and requires less freezer space.”

“Oumph! has an edge as a brand and we want that to be reflected in the packaging. We believe the new design will stand out in the supermarket freezers”, comments Anders ‘Ankan’ Linden, co-founder, corporate chef and head of innovation at Oumph!

Packs such as this and many more recent solutions in the chilled and frozen aisles highlight the industry’s ability to adapt and meet the current demands of brands, retailers and consumers alike.

Linda Arnason, global brand manager at Oumph!

Linda Arnason, global brand manager, Oumph! The LIVEKINDLY Collective.

Creating packaging that appeals to increasingly eco-conscious consumers “In our case is has been a bit easier to shift into cardboard packaging, since we are in the frozen section. A key difference between plant-based and animal based though, is that the target audience in plant-based in general has higher expectations on sustainable packaging then the average consumer.”

Food waste prevention The continued development of reclosable solutions will help with chilled products while the frozen category in particular already has good form in tackling this issue. “The key thing here for us is that we have our distribution in frozen, whish in general give lower food waste. You use what you need, and can easily store the rest in the freezer for later.”

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