Detpak designs, manufactures, and supplies sustainable paper and cardboard packaging solutions for a range of industries, one of which is the fresh produce industry. Designing fit-for-purpose packaging for the fresh produce industry presents several challenges that must be considered to ensure the packaging format's success. Each produce type has different needs, some produce ethylene, some need to retain moisture, whilst some need to be protected from elements such as light. Detpak collaborates with growers and supermarkets to design solutions that consider the critical elements of brief necessary to deliver new standards of packaging to the industry. These can include produce shelf life, sustainability, functionality, and consumer experience, process (inc. automation), scalability, supply chain efficiency, differentiation, premiumisation, as well as grower and retailer strategies.
"We have recently been working on packaging for strawberries and tomatoes, two very different products. With strawberries, you need to consider shelf life, the airflow, and appearance and visibility. With tomatoes, whilst many of those factors are important, it is more about how it performs on an automated packing line," explains Mark Rohrlach, Regional Manager at Detpak. "Another product we have been working on is baby cucumbers; the greatest challenge with these is that they expel moisture, but also need to retain it to stay fresh. For the baby cucumbers, we needed to validate which was the right coating to use, but sometimes one solution creates another problem. With the baby cucumbers, we identified the right coating for retaining moisture, but then found this solution promoted mould growth. It is sometimes just a case of trial and error until you find the right solution. Detpak's innovation hub – LaunchPad with incorporated R&D lab enables leading-edge product development for complex problems such as this."
At the start of the Australian grape season, Detpak's kerbside recyclable grape bag was introduced nationally at Coles. "It has gone very well, resulting in a 71% reduction in plastics, with excellent feedback from growers, Coles and consumers," said Mr Rohrlach. "As we progress into the Australian offseason, we continue to optimise the solution with a focus on a bag format that is optimised for the rigours of import from other countries."
"Products such as mandarins and apples require a more robust packaging, but consumers like to see the produce they are buying, so it is a balance between structure and visibility. When incorporating plastic films, we must ensure the correct fibre ratios are met to be deemed kerbside recyclable under the Australasian Recycling Label (ARL). We work closely with the customer, giving them options throughout the design process. Everything we do is custom-made to the specifications of the customer. The result, a solution that delivers on the critical elements of the design brief with a high likelihood of acceptance as the new standard of packaging."
Detpak boasts owned manufacturing across 7 countries and and sales offices globally. By gaining a deep understanding of a customers wider business requirements, rather than just packaging needs, Detpak are able to provide a holistic solution, acting in a business partner capacity.
For more information:
Mark Rohrlach
Detpak
Tel: +61 8 8448 5109
[email protected]