PAPER and CARDBOARD Become Smart
Aldric Rodríguez/The Noun Project
Case Studies
Innovation in the paper packaging sector can contribute to combating food waste. With active packaging that interacts with food, limiting product degradation and prolonging shelf life.
by Marco Gisotti and Letizia Palmisano
Marco Gisotti is a journalist and adviser. He heads Green Factor, an environmental communication and studies agency. Environmental journalist and social media manager, Letizia Palmisano deals with communication, training and development of web communication strategies. She teaches these subjects in Master’s courses, also in Universities.
Packaging (just think of ancient urns) has long been made to contain, transport and, above all, store food. Or even to avoid food waste. These days, in rich countries, the wide availability of food and the parallel lack of information or attention to expiry dates make many fridges and pantries depositories for food which has gone off and will become waste. What is more, even when food is used correctly, a remarkable amount of waste is produced and it cannot always be recycled or composted because of nonrecyclable packaging. Over the past years, waste reduction has become an important matter for Europe, individual countries and food industries. Packaging must be cut down on which would contribute to reducing food waste. Packaging needs to be made with less raw materials – this would also positively affect production cost reduction. Paper or cardboard packaging Paper and cardboard, “star” players on the circular economy, are some of the most used packaging throughout the whole agrifood industry, where the same waste becomes a resource for recycling. “The paper and cellulosic packaging cycle – Comieco and the Club Carta e Cartoni tell us – is itself a perfect example of the circular economy, with a recovery percentage of 89%,
and a recycling percentage of 80%. This means that, today, 8 packages out of 10 are reincarnated: in 2016, 4.6 million tonnes of cellulosic packaging were issued for consumer use and 3.7 million tonnes were sent to be recycled.” Currently, studies and technologies involved in paper and cardboard packaging production are concentrating on solutions for reducing food waste. There has been a great deal of innovation to this respect: Modified atmosphere packaging is now consolidated and active packaging is establishing itself. These are highly-technological packages which interact with the food, like cellulose pads which absorb gases and liquids or packages which release antimicrobial substances preventing or limiting food degradation of meat, for example. A lot is being done for fruit and vegetable storage. There are now packages which release essential oils and antimicrobial substances to the food, so that the product, whether it is a pear or a tomato, can not only extend its shelf life, but also stay sweet-smelling and tasty until consumption. Another innovation being examined is the introduction of cellulosic packaging for food use combined with bioplastics. According to recent research performed by Bocconi University and promoted by COMIECO, this could be a way to contribute to prolonging product shelf life and reduce the presence of foreign materials in paper
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