While metal is a leading packaging material, different metals serve a wide range of different markets. Some of the most efficient and commonly used metals for food packaging include aluminum, tin and steel. Just like cars, planes and trains have metal exteriors as strong protective barriers, metal packaging is a top choice for giving shipped food and beverage products maximum safety. Here's why metal represents 15 percent of all global packaging.
Metal packaging is typically coated with protective lacquers so that food does not chemically react with metal. This coating also prevents metal surfaces from corrosion. Serving as a layer that separates food from metal, coating also helps preserve the product's taste. Furthermore, thin film coating protects food from exposure to moisture, oxygen and bacteria.
But food producers cannot afford to cut corners on coating, as it must be effective at handling various temperatures. If the lacquer fails to separate food from metal, it can compromise the taste and safety of the food. Global food brands must meet different standards set by governments of various nations when it comes to chemical coatings.
Out of all food products, beverages have commanded a 75 percent share of the market the past decade. Conventional round metal cans dominate this market. The main types of metals used for canned beverages include aluminum, tinplate, tin-free steel and stainless steel.
The reason aluminum is such a common choice for beverage packaging is that it has tremendous strength in protecting the product, even though it's a lightweight material that can be easily bent into any shape. Its lightweight nature and shape flexibility make it a cost-efficient choice for stacking inventory and shipping.
The durability of aluminum also contributes to its usefulness as a sustainable packaging solution. Not only can aluminum last many decades as a repurposed metal by consumers, it can be recycled infinitely without loss of quality. Its sturdy properties allow it to have a long shelf life, as it successfully protects the product from the negative impacts of light, gas, moisture and other environmental factors.
Perishable food such as produce and meats can be preserved for many years inside air-tight tinplate cans. This long-lasting packaging solution has been protecting food now for over two centuries. Like aluminum, tinplate is an effective barrier against corrosion and environmental contaminants. It's also easily recycled, which can dramatically cut production costs.
Tinplate is commonly made from a mixture of tin and other alloys. Many tin cans start out as a sheet of steel or iron coated with tin. It's used for both food and beverage cans, as well as non-food products such as cosmetics and pharmaceutical drugs. The cans are hermetically sealed with minimal chemical preservatives, so that food can last as long as possible for safe consumption.
Aluminum foil is too thin for external packaging of commercial food items, but it's an excellent choice for internal food packaging within an existing container. One of the earliest food product packaged with aluminum foil was Life Savers candy, starting in 1913. Later aluminum foil became a great material for packaging medicine, frozen dinners, popcorn kernels and various snacks.
The flexibility of aluminum allows foil to be produced at various levels of thinness or thickness. The three main categories of foil as a packaging material are household sheets, semi-rigid containers and flexible foil. Pre-formed foil is useful for creating dinner trays that can be placed in an oven for cooking. Thinner foil can be used to protect meat from overcooking due to its thermal insulation properties. Not only can foil reflect heat, it provides a barrier to vapor.
Foil, like other metals, can be recycled, although it often ends up in landfills. Brands that use foil can gain greater credibility while spreading awareness that foil should be placed in recycle bins to reduce environmental waste. Consumers have been reliable at placing aluminum cans in recycle bins, probably because the recycling messages printed on cans have become obvious and omnipresent.
The future of metal packaging remains shiny and bright, partly due to the shininess and brightness of metal. These relaxing visual effects contribute to consumer perceptions that metal provides valuable protection to food products. Many metal containers, especially fancy tins, can be used over and over by consumers without ever reaching a landfill or recycling plant. It's important in an age of growing environmental awareness for food brands that rely on metal packaging to remind consumers why metal is so sustainable.