Several large shippers have conducted a trial with the Flexfresh Liner bags, shipping blueberries from South America to Europe. This is a journey of more than 3 weeks. Shipping loose blueberries resulted in a weight loss of 19.96% on average, whereas the packed product with the Flexfresh Liner bag resulted in a weight loss of only 0.76% after 7 weeks. A reduction of 96%!
A huge amount of fresh produce is shipped around the world. The resulting transit times of up to 5 weeks have a large effect on the weight and quality of the product. Reducing weight loss and maintaining the quality are therefore key in managing cost and retaining customers.
The goal for the shippers was to determine whether it was possible to ship and store the blueberries for 7 weeks with the Flexfresh liner bag. To test the effects properly a few conditions were tested. Blueberries packed in punnets with and without the Flexfresh Liner bag. And loose blueberries with and without the Flexfresh Liner bag. Some interesting conclusions can be drawn from the results.
The Flexfresh Liner bag reduces the weight loss by 96% versus loose products (0.76% vs. 19.96%). On top of that there is a large quality improvement. After 7 weeks the blueberries in the liner bags were still evaluated as good, firm, crunchy and with good taste. However, the control had a lot of collapsed and mouldy berries.
The results also show that pre-packing itself is not enough. It addresses the weight loss but not the quality problems. Punnets with and without the liners bag resulted in a 0.76% and 2.56% weight loss. These are both significantly lower than the loose product at 19.96%. However, the punnets that were not using the liner bag still had the same product quality problems in terms of mould.
The conclusion from the trials is therefore that the Flexfresh Liner bags can be used for shipping and storing blueberries for 7 weeks. It results in significant cost savings and quality improvements vs. loose products. Whether or not the product should be pre-packed before placing them in the liner bags depends on the extra packaging and handling cost and thus the flexibility that is required upon arrival.
Companies that are interested to learn more may contact Ivo Hendriks from PerfoTec - ivo@perfotec.com. PerfoTec will also be present at the Amsterdam Produce Show and Conference, which takes place from November 2-4 in The Netherlands.