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Because packaging helps to regulate the present environment of a food product, it is beneficial in creating conditions that prolong the storage life of a food. Packaging materials that are usually used for foods may be classed as flexible (paper, thin laminates, and plastic film), semi-rigid (aluminum foil, laminates, paperboard, and thermoformed plastic), and rigid (metal, glass, and thick plastic). Plastic materials are widely used in food packaging because they are relatively cheap, lightweight, and easy to manipulate into desired shapes.

The selective permeability of polymer-based materials to gases, such as carbon dioxide and oxygen, as well as light and moisture, has led to the development of modified-atmosphere packaging. If the barrier properties are carefully selected, a packaging material can continue a modified atmosphere inside the package and thus extend the shelf life of the food product.

Dehydrated foods must be kept apart from moisture during storage. Packaging materials such as polyvinyl chloride, polyvinylidene chloride, and polypropylene have low moisture permeability. Similarly, packaging materials with low gas permeability are utilized for fatty foods in order to minimize oxidation. Because fresh fruits and vegetables respire, they require packaging materials, such as polyethylene, that have high permeability to gases.

Smart packages offer properties that meet the unique needs of certain consumables. For example, packages created with oxygen-absorbing elements remove oxygen from the inside of the package, thus guarding oxygen-sensitive products from oxidation. Temperature-sensitive films exhibit an immediate change in gas permeability when they are exposed to a temperature above or below a set constant. These films morph from a crystalline structure to an amorphous structure at a set temperature, causing the gas permeability to change substantially.

If you are looking for shrink packaging film and shrink wrap equipment, talk to Redblade. Redblade are the experts in plastic packaging and Cryrovac film.