A Survey on Packaging Materials and Technologies for Commercial Food Products

This paper presents the outcomes of a comprehensive and detailed analysis of the Italian food market, targeting the Fast Moving Consumer Goods products and aimed at defining the existing relationships between product characteristics and packaging technologies. A sample of 175 products has been examined, and the corresponding characteristics and packaging technologies were derived from an in-field investigation performed in large and small Italian retailers. Subsequent statistical analyses were first focused on providing descriptive statistics concerning the packaging materials used for food products. Then, cluster analysis was exploited to group products on the basis of the material used for the primary packaging. Discriminant analysis was also adopted to identify product characteristics that significantly contribute to the choice of packaging material. Finally, based on the clusters obtained, contingency tables were used to explore possible relationships among packaging material, packaging techniques and relevant product characteristics. Results of this study could provide useful guidelines to food manufacturers to identify the most suitable packaging technology for new food products.