PACKAGING ROOTS PACKAGING CHANGES

Packaging Evolution  Reduction in the size of the family unit, due to

decreased birth rates, increased number of one-
parent families and increased longevity. There are
now many more single- and two-person
households than there were in the 1950s and
1960s and this means a requirement for smaller
packs, thus more packaging per kilogram of food.
 Growth in the number of households in which
all adults are in either full-or part-time work,
outside of the home.
 Growth in ownership of domestic appliances
such as the fridge and freezer has allowed
consumers to buy larger quantities of ‘fresh’ foods,
which are expected to remain in good condition for
prolonged periods of time.
 More disposable income means more money to
spend on food, especially luxury food and drink.
 More international travel and exposure to other
cultures, leading to interest in ‘ethnic’ foods, but
with minimal preparation time.

PACKAGING DESIGN AND ITS ROLE

1. Packaging as BRAND IMAGE

- Packaging was, and still is, the perfect

communication vehicle to showcase the brand image.
Packaging can be so strong that it makes a brand
instantly recognizable.

- Markets, and the way consumers receive information,

have changed, leaving the package a major marketing
tool.

- Packages have become three-dimensional ads for

brands. We now see packages that change color when
they are hot or cold as well as ones that light up and
talk. The lifespan of a package is now evaluated by
consumers and seen as part of the total brand
experience.

In 2005, the Wall Street Journal reported on

multinational manufacturing giant Procter & Gamble's
concept of the First Moment of Truth (or FMOT,
pronounced "EFF-mot"), writing, "Procter & Gamble
believes shoppers make up their mind about a product
in about the time it takes to read this [sentence]."
Essentially, in the first three to seven seconds, after a
shopper encounters a product on a store shelf,
marketers have the best
chance of turning a browser into a buyer.
Because corporations have seen how creative
packaging and brand identity have positively impacted
the sales and growth of certain products, design is now
being considered a real player in marketing. Designers
must step up and articulate their designs' results, not
just talk about the wonderful aesthetics, in order to
capture these new opportunities.
LEVELS OF PACKAGING
• Primary packaging
 Proper packaging can help ensure that your
business operations run smoothly—from the order
processing to your customer’s hands.
 The departments involved in packaging go beyond
design. Production, procurement, and distribution
each play their own part in the process. These are
all important aspects of packaging you may
consider.
 In both B2B and B2C environments, packaging
can play a crucial role in the product’s supply
chain. This discussion walks through supply chain
management and how optimizing the entire
packaging process can positively affect the
efficiency of your brand’s business.

- includes not just the materials in direct

contact with the product, but all of the
packaging which surrounds the product when
the consumer takes it home.
- For a multipack of crisps, for example, the
primary packaging will be the individual bags
and the large bag into which the separate
packs are packed.
- A useful way to define primary packaging is to
think of it as all the packaging which eventually Business to Customer
finds its way into the domestic waste stream,  B2B (business-to-business), a type of electronic
once the product is used up. commerce is the exchange of products,
• Secondary packaging services or information between businesses
and consumers.
- used to group packs together for ease of
handling. Business to Business
- In the example above of the crisps, several  It is the exchange of products, services or
multipacks are packed into printed corrugated information between businesses (such as one
cases. The case is the secondary packaging. involving a manufacturer and wholesaler, or a
- Other examples of secondary packaging are wholesaler and a retailer) rather than between
shrinkwrap film, the corrugated board, and businesses and consumers.
thermoformed plastic trays used for shelf-
ready packaging. B2C B2B
Smaller purchase size Larger purchase size
• Tertiary packaging
and lower dollar and higher dollar
- used to collate secondary packs for ease of amounts amounts
transport. Purchases are made Many people are
- One of the most common forms of tertiary for individuals or involved in the buying
packaging is the pallet, along with stretch- households Buying decisions and they can
wrap film and a label, to secure the decisions may include be from multiple
secondary packs to the pallet and provide a influencers or other departments in an
ready means of identification. users. organization.
- Roll cages and crates are also examples of The sales process Relationship-driven
tertiary packaging. tends to be more sales process.
product-or-service-
Instrumental role of packaging in supply chain driven and less
management relationship-driven
Product Packaging excluding service
providers.
 Product packaging is more important than some Frequent impulse buys Highly calculated,
might think. As a brand owner, you want your and emotional buying rational buying
products to be enclosed in a sturdy material that decisions can be decisions.
looks good and gets your customers excited about made.
receiving them. The sales cycle is Longer, more complex
 much shorter; the sales cycle.
buying process is often
a single step.
Purchases revolve Purchases are based
around immediate on long-term goals
results and
gratifications.
Brand Identity is Brand Identity is less
emphasized. emphasized
Marketing departments Marketing departments
frequently take a larger take up a small
percentage of the percentage of the
overall expense. overall expense.

WHAT IS SUPPLY CHAIN MANAGEMENT?

Supply chain management is the process of

facilitating the movement of goods and services. This
includes taking raw materials or goods and turning
them into finished products.

Supply chain activities encompass product

development, sourcing, manufacturing, logistics, and
tracking.

SCM is the management of flow of goods and services

and includes all processes that transform raw materials
into final products.

Supply Chain is a network betweem a company and

its suppliers to produce and distribute a specific
product to the final buyer; it includes ddifferent
activities, people, entities, information, and resources.
 THE GENERAL SUPPLY CHAIN MANAGEMENT
FLOW

The supply chain management process is often

arranged in five workflows: procurement, material
management, manufacturing and production, order
management, and distribution.

1. PROCUREMENT

- This step involves the sourcing and purchasing of raw

materials needed to create the packaging from
vendors.

- Using flowcharts to refine the procurement workflow

helps prevent duplicate supplier research.

- The act of obtaining goods or services, typically for

business purposes

Key processes: purchase order processing, receipt

confirmation, and invoice verification

2. MATERIAL MANAGEMENT

- Material management is the process of ensuring that

there are sufficient and necessary components
available and ready for use during manufacturing and
production.

Optimized supply chain activities should manage

product packaging efficiently, affordably, and with little
to no error. Key processes: acquisition, inspection, inventory
management, identifying gaps, and purchasing missing
A streamlined supply chain can minimize
or remaining items.
businesses’ costs and boost productivity in the
production cycle, while a poor supply chain process
can negatively impact ROI and customer satisfaction.
3. MANUFACTURING AND PRODUCTION

- This step assigns production orders and schedules

manufacturing execution in specific sequences and
time frames in the middle of the supply chain.

- A carefully planned flow chart for this step can

decrease lead times.

Key processes: production planning, scheduling, and

quality control
 5. DISTRIBUTION

- The distribution process involves coordinating orders,

inventory and warehouse management, and delivering
the products or goods to the customers.

- An optimized distribution process can decrease order

errors and improve inventory location accuracy.

- The efficient manufacturing and distribution of

products are directly associated with excellent
packaging systems.

- Packaging protects goods from external damage and

showcases their quality, allowing for reliable
transportation.

Key processes: transportation planning, execution,

and costing

4. ORDER MANAGEMENT

- This step covers the collection, validation, and

documentation of all information required to fulfill and
process customer orders.

- Proper and efficient customer data management can

minimize order errors, speed up the distribution
process, and enhance customer happiness.

Packaging has many functions that address specific

challenges in the supply chain, including the following:

 PROTECTIVE FUNCTION: must safeguard the

goods from external factors and ensure that
products survive handling during transportation.
Key processes: sales order processing and billing
process  STORAGE FUNCTION: Since the products can
travel and be contained in multiple locations before
reaching the final destination, the packaging
 should use materials that allow convenient
storage while meeting storage requirements.
 TRANSPORT FUNCTION: Proper and efficient
packaging design enables easy handling,
stowing, and stacking during transportation in
a way that maximizes the space available.
 TERTIARY FUNCTION: This refers to the extra
protective carrier that safeguards the secondary
and primary packaging of the goods. It also has an
organizational purpose—grouping individual
products into one box.
Below are some of the factors that contribute to
efficient supply chain management:
 WEIGHT OF THE PACKAGING
- Weight and mass pose significant challenges
to the costs of logistics. That’s why it’s more
strategic to develop protective primary,
secondary, and tertiary packaging that
adequately protects the item, doesn’t take up
too much space and weight, and is easy to
handle and transport.
 SUSTAINABILITY
- Consumers are becoming increasingly mindful
of their purchases for the benefit of the
environment. Packaging that reduces the
materials used and is reusable can minimize
costs and cut the lead time in procurement.
 WASTE PREVENTION
- Eliminating any needless movement to fulfill an
operation, such as piling products and
reloading, can enhance operations.
The recycling or reusing of packages sent back
by the customer or as leftovers from previous
steps can be utilized for the next shipment,
cutting costs and waste significantly.
 SIMPLIFIED PACKAGING SOLUTIONS
- Some businesses can use the same size and
packaging format for all their products,
eliminating the complexity of their packaging
process. While this may not apply to
companies that offer various goods, studying
the best packaging that balances the
complexity and efficiency of your packaging
process can significantly reduce wasted space
and waiting time in supply chain management.
THE IMPACT OF PACKAGING TO THE SUPPLY
CHAIN PERFORMANCE
 Packaging material: impact of all packaging
material
 Transport: Impact of packaging on
transportation in all parts of the system
 Material handling: impact of packaging on
material handling activities in plants and in
warehouses
 Waste handling: include waste, recycling and
reuse of packaging systems as well as
damaged components because of insufficient
packaging.
 Capital: impact of packaging on capital costs of
components in inventory
Making even minor improvements in your packaging
design can make a world of difference in production
operations and costs. As a business owner, it’s
essential that you continuously look into ways and
opportunities to improve your supply chain
management to refine your processes.
OPTIMIZING THE PACKAGING PRODUCTION
PROCESS FOR SMOOTH OPERATIONS
Businesses can minimize costs, improve profitability,
and enhance transportation efficiency by being
strategic and smart with packaging.
 DECREASE THE WEIGHT OF PACKAGING
MATERIALS
- Weight determines the number of pallets needed
per truck for transport. Weight-efficient packaging
allows businesses to move many products without
sacrificing protection. Lightweight packaging also
helps lower shipment costs.
- Ensure that your product’s packaging is designed
to be carried and transported easily. A well-
engineered packaging structure makes it easier for
employees to move the products around,
prioritizes warehouse safety, and protects your
brand’s inventory.
 MANAGE REDUNDANCY IN PRODUCED
PACKAGING
- Make sure to request the exact packaging
quantities needed for your production orders.
There should only be a small percentage of what
goes beyond the margin to cover production errors
and minimize waste.
 SOURCE THE RIGHT RAW MATERIALS
- The process of procuring and processing raw
materials varies depending on the product.
Knowing the ins and outs of every step in the
workflow and identifying the materials needed for
the packaging can eliminate delays in the
operation.
 OPTIMIZE THE PRODUCTION AND PRINTING
PROCESS
- Packaging design is crucial for an optimized
production process. Design aspects such as
identification, barcodes, hazard cautions,
instruction, and other relevant information should
be displayed appropriately and easily spotted.
- It’s also imperative to finalize the design and
ensure all necessary information is included to
avoid any last-minute design changes that could
negatively affect the production and printing
process.
 MANAGE TRANSPORTATION COST
EFFECTIVELY
- The costs involved in transportation covers from
manufacturer to distributors and activities
involved during handling and storage. Choosing
a more efficient packaging format can reduce
the costs of handling, storage, and
transportation of products, whether by land,
sea, or air.
- When you start to implement lean thinking from
the top of your packaging production (e.g.,
decreased materials) in the supply chain, you
can save more in the final costs of
transportation and handling of the goods.
Managing transportation costs is crucial for
businesses working within a budget.
Economic Order Quantity: What Does It Mean and
Who Is It Important For?
Economic order quantity (EOQ) is the ideal quantity of
units a company should purchase to meet demand
while minimizing inventory costs such as:
- holding costs,
- shortage costs,
- and order costs.
This production-scheduling model was developed in
1913 by Ford W. Harris and has been refined over
time.
The economic order quantity formula assumes that
demand, ordering, and holding costs all remain
constant.
Economic Order Quanity is the ideal order quantity a
company should purchase to minimize inventory costs
such as holding costs, shortage costs, and order costs.
Formula for Calculating Economic Order Quantity
(EOQ)
Note: Packaging Cost is part of the Inventory Holding
Cost
Assume, for example, a retail clothing shop carries a
line of men’s jeans, and the shop sells 1,000 pairs of
jeans each year. It costs the company $5 per year to
hold a pair of jeans in inventory, and the fixed cost to
place an order is $2.
The EOQ formula is:
=Sqrt of {(2 x 1,000 pairs x $2 order cost) / ($5 holding
cost) }
= 28.3 with rounding.
The ideal order size to minimize costs and meet
customer demand is slightly more than 28 pairs of
jeans
THE IMPORTANCE OF PACKAGING IN SUPPLY
CHAIN MANAGEMENT
Brands should see packaging as a vital component in
enabling a smooth-running supply chain. Packaging,
as a protective carrier, is critical to the production,
sales, marketing, and distribution of products or goods,
making packaging a vital part of the overall process.
In a typical supply chain management workflow,
product packaging safeguards the finished products as
they move across the entire process, especially during
transport to retailers and the final destination.
An optimized supply chain management in
packaging can:
- increase a business’s cash flow,
- maximize resources and time in the production
cycle,
- improve the overall efficiency of the process,
- and make the operation smoother from the
procurement stage to the time the products reach
the end-user.
PACKAGING FUNCTIONS
7 MAIN REASONS WHY PACKAGING DEVELOPED
AND IS IN USE TODAY
1. To protect a product from damage or
contamination by micro-organisms and air,
moisture, and toxins.
 The product must be protected against being
dropped, crushed, and the vibration it suffers
during transport.
 Delicate products such as fruits need to be
protected by a rigid package such as a laminated
container.
 The product must also be protected against the
climate including high temperatures, humidity,
light, and gases in the air. It must also be
protected against micro-organisms, chemicals,
soil, and insects.
2. To deliver the item as a whole
 Some shapes cannot be easily packaged, for
example, certain vegetables. However, there are
methods of getting around this problem.
 Suppliers of canned vegetables such as carrots
have developed a particular type of plant that
yields carrots that are straight and smaller than the
normal variety. These fit into cans. Some products
such as fruit juices and sausages need to be
contained in packages that hold them together and
are sealed to prevent spillage and loss.
3. Product identity
 Packaging is the main way products are
advertised and identified. To the manufacturer, the
package clearly identifies the product inside and it
is usually the package that the customer
recognizes when shopping.
 Advertising is very important when a manufacturer
launches a new or existing product. The package,
through its colour scheme or logo, is what is
normally identified by the customer. The package
will also contain important information including
ingredients and ‘sell by date’.
4. Protection during Transport and Ease of
Transport.
 A package should be designed to make it easy to
transport, move and lift. A regular shaped package
(such as a cuboid) can be stacked without too
much space between each package being wasted.
This means that more packages can be
transported in a container of a lorry. Unusually
shaped packages can lead to space being wasted
and this can be costly if thousands of the same
package are being transported.
5. Stacking and Storage.
 In supermarkets and shops, it must be possible to
stack packages so that space is not wasted on the
shelves. Lost space on shelves is looked upon as
a lost opportunity to sell to a customer. Also, the
package must be designed in such a way that all
the important information can be seen by a
potential buyer, especially the product name.
 The next time you visit the supermarket, look
carefully at the shape of the packages. They are
usually the same rectangular/cuboid shape. It is
the selection of colors and shades that determine
whether the product inside is regarded as a
quality, sophisticated or cheap item. Often
packages are stacked on top and alongside each
other to reduce wasted space. The shape and
form of the package determine how efficiently it
can be stacked or stored.
6. Printed Information
 Information that is useful to consumers and
companies such as Supermarkets, is printed on
the packaging. This includes ingredients, sell-by
dates, price, special offers, manufacturers'
address, contact information, product title,
barcode, and more.
 The bar code is extremely useful to the shop
selling the product. When the barcode is scanned,
the computer system automatically determines if
the product needs reordering. Also, the price of the
product appears at the till.
7. Aesthetic value

 Packaging can make a simple product look

attractive or a unique product looks ordinary. It’s
an important aesthetic touchpoint that can make or
break a sale.
 Packaging makes it easier for the customer to
identify and differentiate it from other products.
Moreover, attractive packages have a property to
stand out and attract customers towards it.

FUNCTIONS OF PACKAGING AND LEGISLATIONS

Local industries have adopted various global standards 2. For Protection

for Packaging and Packaging materials depending on
the product. In general, BRC Global Standards have
been a good reference.
The Standard has always been
intended to assist sites and their
customers to comply with legislative
requirements for product safety. It
categorizes the application based on
its intended use, whether its hygienic-
sensitive or not. The standard typically
follows the quality management
standards as applied to whichever
category.
FUNCTIONS OF PACKAGING
 Protection means the prevention/reduction of
physical damage to the product, during all stages
of its life. This includes manufacture and
packaging operations, storage and handling in
warehouses, transport to the merchant, distributor
or store for sale, display, and moving to the final
usage point.
 The key steps to follow to decide what type of
packaging will provide the product with the
appropriate level of protection are define the
product, define the environment to which the
product is likely to be exposed, and investigate the
properties (including cost) of available protective
packaging materials.

1. For Containment

 Properly designed, constructed and sealed packs

provide complete containment for the contents,
preventing unsightly or dangerous leakage, or loss
of parts.
 Containment also means keeping a number of
different or the same items packed together, and
this applies to primary, secondary and tertiary
packs.
 A key step in evaluating the risk of leakage is to
identify the factors which can affect the efficient
containment of the product. Leak testing should be
carried out during development, making sure that
the likely conditions of use are taken into account.

Some common examples of containment failures

should be address by the packaging technologist:
3. For Preservation crispness of cereals; excessive heat causing
drying out; excessive cold causing undesirable
 The objective of preservation is to extend the shelf
freezing.
life of a product. This part applies mainly, but not
exclusively, to the food, drink, pharmaceutical and
cosmetic industries. The basic principle of product preservation processes
 According to the Institute of Food Science and is to address the cause(s) of spoilage, and then to use
Technology, ‘shelf life’ is defined as the time appropriate packaging and storage conditions to
during which the product, when stored at the maintain the product in its desired state.
recommended conditions, will remain safe; be
certain to retain desired sensory, chemical,
physical and microbiological characteristics; and
comply with any label declaration.
 To determine the optimum packaging required to
extend shelf life, we need to define the product in
terms of what will cause it to deteriorate, i.e. what
is the spoilage mechanism.
 Defining the spoilage mechanism of a product is
part of the research and development stage of the
product, and this is an example of how product
and pack development personnel must work
closely together.
 Product spoilage, and therefore shelf life is
determined by microbiological, physical or
chemical factors, depending on the product, the
process, the packaging and the storage conditions
(Blackburn, 2000).
1. Biotic spoilage is caused by microorganisms
4. For Convenience
(bacteria, moulds, yeasts) which may render a
product unacceptable in appearance, taste,  Packaging designers have the opportunity to build
smell and effectiveness, or be toxic and cause in features to make handling easy, convenient and
sickness. Different organisms have preferred safe. If it is both intuitive and ergonomically sound
conditions for growth and adverse conditions in how the pack should be picked up, opened and
which they will not propagate, and this is the unpacked, potential damage to the contents and
basis of product preservation systems. personnel will be minimised. Just some examples
of consumer convenience are:
The conditions to be considered are as follows:
• easy product access from tubes and
squeezable bottles;

• easy-open features such as tear-tapes in

film wraps or ‘tear here’ cuts in sachets;

• easy-open and reclose features such as

flip-top closures on sauces and shampoos;

• packs which collate, for example, five

individually-wrapped snacks into one pack
which is easier to handle and store in the
cupboard than single packs;

• boil-in-bag and heat-in-tray foods, which

mean no dirty saucepans;

• ring-pull cans, requiring no special opening

2. Abiotic spoilage refers to the chemical or tools.
physical changes brought about by external
factors such as oxygen, moisture, light,
temperature, loss/gain of volatiles, e.g. oxygen,
causing rancidity in fats, creams and oils; loss
of moisture causing drying out and hardening
of bread, lipstick, pastes, etc.; Gain of moisture
5. For Information
causing lumping of powders and loss of
 There is a need for information on the identity of
the product, its weight/volume, destination and
handling and possibly unpacking/repacking
instructions, and such information must be easy to
locate and understand. For important instructions,
consideration should be given to the use of
pictograms, to overcome any language barriers.
For the consumer there is an increasing need to
provide legal, promotional and usage data for a
product.
LEGISLATIONS
1. Legislations concerning FOOD
 The main area of concern is the possibility that
components of the materials in contact with the
food could leach into the food and endanger a
person’s health, or adversely affect the quality and
taste of the food. By law, materials okay to be in
contact with food should have this symbol.
 With respect to paper and board the legislation
has not been developed to specify the
methodology by which these objectives are to be
met, and because of the absorbent nature of the
material, the procedures used for plastics are not
suitable.
 Glass containers for foods are required to comply
with the general requirements for materials in
contact with foods it has been decorated with
unsuitable enamel. Other symbols such as below
should be adopted to represent the product.
2. Legislation concerning safety of packaging for
MEDICINES
 There are widespread requirements that
medicines are to be contained within child-
resistant packs. Exhaustive panel tests are
required to validate that the packs cannot usually
be opened by young children and that they can
usually be opened by an elderly person.
 The design and layout of the text of the pack is
controlled as part of the product license. Amongst
these is a requirement that the product name and
strength appears in Braille. this may be achieved
by embossing a carton or printing a thermally
raised varnish onto a label.
 Pharmaceutical measuring devices such as
spoons are required to be ‘CE’ marked, which
indicates that the device has been validated and
subject to ongoing process controls to ensure that
it accurately delivers the required quantity of the
medicine.
3. Legislation concerning safety of AEROSOLS
 The Aerosol Dispensers Directive has been
subjected to several updates, and covers areas
such as: the size of
the container by material; the testing of empty
cans; the testing of finished aerosol product; and
the requirements for clear labelling for instructions
for safe use and disposal, together with
appropriate warnings. The legislation includes the
provision of the ‘reversed epsilon’ mark ' to
indicate compliance with the requirements of the
Directive and enable smooth transport across the
borders between EU countries.
4. Legislation relating to the filling of products

 Three rules are followed.

- The average of the contents of the packs shall
not be less than the nominal quantity (the label
claim);
- Less than 2.5% of the packs may contain less
than the nominal quantity minus the permitted
tolerable negative error; and
- No packs may contain less than the nominal
quantity minus twice the permitted tolerable
negative error.

The failure to comply with legislation will lead to the

occurrence of circumstances which the regulations are
in place to prevent, such as:

- failing to provide the appropriate level of preservation;

- failing to provide the required information; or

- delivering poor quality or unsafe packs into the

market.

these may be handled as customer complaints but may

also lead to legal proceedings. the penalties for non-
compliance may be brought against different bodies.