Packaging is everywhere, from clothes and medicine to food and electronic gadgets, everything is packed.
Packaging is everywhere, from clothes and medicine to food and electronic gadgets, everything is packed.
Packaging is everywhere, from clothes and medicine to food and electronic gadgets, everything is packed.
As the world moves towards advancement and making people’s life easy, one thing is sure things have become smarter than before, and packaging is one of them.
Packaging was a continuous functional aspect of protecting the product during shipping and transportation. Over the years, the brands recognized the effectiveness of the packaging design and how it can help them stand out from their competitors.
With the added capabilities of new and emerging technologies in the packaging, brands can create compelling customer experiences, driving a fundamental shift in the relationship between customers and brands.
For example, thin electronic sensors in the creative packaging monitor the product's condition and provide information such as storage time, freshness, temperature, and other crucial stuff, thus, improving customer experience with personalized content.
And that’s where the role of Smart packaging design comes into play.
But,
Smart packaging adds more functionality to your traditional packaging design by linking it with technologies. The new technologies make your ordinary container into a more active and intelligent packaging.
For example, Smart innovative food packaging design incorporates sensors that detect bacterial growth and the condition of the foodstuff.
3. Connected Packaging- As the name suggests, it allows customers to connect with the brand through packaging. For example, use tags, QR codes, or sensors that generate and collect data to improve customer experience.
So, you got to know about smart packaging and its importance. Then, let’s dive into the industry's 8 fabulous trends and waves.
Expiration dates are always a guessing game. Sometimes, food feels terrible even if it’s good, or it could go earlier than the expected date and give the customer an unpleasing surprise. Freshness indicators use biosensors that make it possible to recognize specific enzymes, hormones, and other substances, that decompose food and make it unpleasant for the customers to use.
Another way is using color-changing labels that indicate the freshness of the product, helping people to waste less and consume it before throwing it out. In addition, it provides information about the product quality based on chemical changes or microbial growth in the food product.
Here’s an example from Bizongo that shows color-changing smart labels to check the freshness of the food.
Food Packaging - Freshness Indicator with Color Changing Smart Labels
Packaging-sensitive materials can be negatively impacted by moisture and require extra protection, and anti-moisture packs keep them dry and free from any moisture.
These brand packages are attached with devices that reduce microbial growth and eliminate defrosting water from frozen foods and fluids from flesh products such as meat. Moisture absorbents can be classified into Relative humidity regulators to absorb moisture and control humidity, while liquid removers absorb and hold exuded liquids from food products.
Here’s an example from Cilicant that make oxygen scavengers absorb oxygen and improves the shelf life of products like baked goods, snacks, spices, dried fruits, cured meats, dairy products, and many more.
Edible packaging is another attractive and creative packaging that alleviates the reliance on fossil fuels and can potentially decrease carbon footprint. In addition, customers can eat it as a part of a food product.
It is a biopolymer designed to protect food from spoilage and can biodegrade like the food it contains. These packagings are tasteless as possible in order not to be detected during the consumption of the edible packaged food product.
Edible packagings are of two types films and coatings.
Moreover, corn starch-based packaging seems to be gaining more popularity in the retail industry. As a result, items such as bags, cutlery, and takeaway containers are gaining more attention in the industry.
Here’s an example of Cupffee, the cup you can eat with your coffee.
Time Temperature Indicators (TTIs) allows smart labels on brand packaging designed with food products that indicate changes in temperature and the remaining shelf life of products.
These smart labels can be calibrated to specific requirements of a given type of food; for example, some food should not be frozen, and TTIs can indicate the food is mishandled, causing it to freeze and become inedible. While other foods are heat sensitive, TTIs can mean that food is being compromised.
In addition, TTIs allows manufacturers to trace food along the supply line, and consumers can feel confident about purchasing.
It is hard to keep perishable food fresh; you want to improve your foods' shelf life and prevent freshness and flavor.
Modified Atmosphere packaging works by sealing the food inside the package and slowing down the growth of microorganisms and the rate of oxidation. As a result, it creates a controlled atmosphere and slows down the process that contributes to food spoilage, resulting in longer shelf lives and maintaining food quality.
For example, soft cheese products are sealed with modified atmospheric packaging (20-40% carbon dioxide and balanced nitrogen gas) to improve their shelf lives.
Seaweed packaging is an eco-friendly replacement for plastic materials and is quite feasible. In addition, it is biodegradable and edible, but it can also be made to dissolve when it comes in contact with water, which is best for packaging tea or cereals.
Seaweed packaging holds drinks and foods in the form of capsules, packages, cups & straws, sachets, and many others. It helps to increase shelf-life and is a rich source of nutrients, making it the perfect choice for food packaging like biryani packaging, fast food packaging, and more.
With more and more companies pledging to “go green” and look for sustainable packaging materials, Seaweed can solve problems for small-scale packaging.
Here’s an example of Sway, which makes seaweed-based packaging replaceable with petroleum plastics.
With the growth of selling fake products and the lack of awareness among the customers, counterfeiting has grown tremendously. There are countless impacts of counterfeiting, from creating a negative impact to health risks to customers.
Anti-counterfeiting packages help to stop the unauthorized production of goods and protect brand reputation. Various methods prevent counterfeiting using Barcodes, holograms, digital watermarks, RIF, NFC, Smart ink, serial numbers, and many more.
For example, Hershey uses Smart label QR codes to help customers learn more information on ingredients and answer commonly asked questions.
Food waste is something we all are concerned about; no one wants to consume expired food and risk their health.
Customers expect the shelves of shops and supermarkets to be stocked with fresh products reducing the complex issue later. In addition, expiring date tracking technology automates the manual checking of expiration dates and gives store teams complete visibility of the product.
Expiry date tracking gives stores an overview of the products, effectively manages inventory levels, reduces product spoilage, and increases profitability.
Here is an example of TotalCtrl, that help tracks expiration dates in supermarkets, food banks, restaurants, and hotels.
Smart Packaging connects products and brands that enhance customer experience and make packaging design more communicative. In addition, it offers an opportunity for companies to make strides in sustainability and anti-counterfeiting.
Smart packaging can benefit brands and especially the E-commerce world. Bizongo is here to help you with smart and innovative brand packaging design to help you stand out against competitors. If you are looking for one of the best packaging design services, our team is here to help you.
We are Desworks, the design arm of Bizongo. We design brands, packaging, products and have delivered 85+ successful projects in the last 5 years of our existence.
Our winning formula for brands, packaging has a mix of aesthetics, functionality, and experience.
We Bizongo Desworks are here to make your (brand, product & packaging) design work.