Report Explores Future of Active and Intelligent Packaging in Food and Drinks

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A new report titled The Future of Active and Intelligent Packaging in Food and Drinks: Enabling Technologies, Optimized Consumption, and Multi-sensory Features has been published by Reportlinker.com, New York, N.Y., USA. According to the report, awareness and interest in active and intelligent packaging is growing. Government funded projects that aim to introduce, evaluate, or initiate developments in active and intelligent packaging have been implemented. However, in the survey of food and drinks industry executives carried out for this report, 57.3% of respondents were "not at all aware" or "slightly aware" of active and intelligent packaging.

These results indicate that awareness and understanding of active and intelligent packaging innovations and their resulting benefits will need to increase to facilitate more extensive uptake of these technologies.
The focus of active and intelligent packaging, the report continues, has moved from specific retailer and manufacturer driven benefits like shelf-life extension and spoilage protection, to include more consumer focused benefits such as freshness, quality, and information. A range of diverse technologies and sectors are now relevant for active and intelligent packaging in food and drinks.

In the survey carried out for this report, 85.3% of executives stated that active and intelligent packaging will have "some" or "a large" impact on innovation within the food and drinks sector over the next five years. Freshness and quality indicators, temperature and time indicators, flavor and aroma releasing technologies, natural antimicrobials, self-heating and cooling technologies, were identified as the most important innovations for consumers over the next five years.

 Some 9% of all new food and drinks products launched over the period 2006 to 2009 were tagged with "fresh," "freshness," or related terms. Another 3.2% of new products launched were tagged with the term "quality." Food safety and traceability, food wastage, and environmental concerns are influencing the uptake of active and intelligent packaging technologies in the food and drinks sector, the survey disclosed. More information about this new report is available online.