Flexible packaging dominates food market

While glass, metal and paper packaging are slowly falling out of fashion, innovative flexible packaging is becoming more popular.

Market research company Canadean estimates that 786,095 million units of flexible packaging will be consumed within global retail food markets in 2018, accounting for more than 53% of the food packaging market.

The report finds that the global demand for pouches in the food market will grow by 2489 million pack units between 2014 and 2017 — a 14.9% increase in the total food pouches market size. Metal, on the other hand, will record the slowest growth in the food packaging market.

Kirsty Nolan, analyst at Canadean, said that lightweight and durable pouches can be stored more easily in cupboards, are less likely to get damaged and are lighter to transport. She predicts that microwaveable pouches are on the verge of replacing tinned ready-meal products, as the outer plastic layers of microwaveable pouches are designed to cool quickly while keeping contents hot, allowing consumers to eat straight from the microwave.

Other advantages of flexible pouches include: cost reductions due to lightweight, thin plastic walls and no outer packaging; easy-to-open and resealable grooves or zips; waste minimisation through sustainable and biodegradable material; and improvements in shelf life of the product.