The evolution of powdered food product packaging

How to extend the shelf-life of products using new, more sustainable packaging technologies

Hermetically sealed sift-proof boxes, adopting technology developed by the American Nordson Company, represented a revolution in the packaging and packing world.
This innovative gluing system makes the paperboard carton used for the packaging of many different types of food and other products, hermetic, and therefore safer thanks to the special gluing system used for the flaps of the carton.

One sector that can really make the most of the huge potential this new gluing technique represents, is packaging for food products.
Deciding which material to use for the packaging of your products is an essential stage in production process decision-making. You have to consider various aspects related to food safety legislation, the hygiene standards for a product to be sold to the public, how best to preserve it and its particular characteristics, such as hygroscopic products for example, or products that could become infested with insects.

A paperboard box, produced using the sift-proof gluing technique, today lets you choose this ecologically sustainable material with performance that guarantees much better protection for the product than in the past. This technique in fact isolates the contents of the pack from the external environment, creating a barrier that’s impervious to air, damp and light. But the product is better than just more protected, its shelf-life and preservation benefit too, also at home once it’s been opened.

Packaging for food products: the example of powdered milk

For this special type of highly hygroscopic foodstuff, the packaging industry traditionally used plastic, aluminium or metal packs.
If cartons are used for powdered milk, to protect this particular granular foodstuff, another layer of internal protection is adopted: the Bag-in-Box.

As powdered milk is a hygroscopic product, it’s understandable that a producer takes their time when choosing a new packaging system for their product, and they might not immediately consider paperboard to be suitable, as this material isn’t usually thought to be able to protect the product from damp and guarantee it will stay fresh.

New types of cartons that adopt sift-proof technology have a special film inside and not only protect the product from damp, they also maintain the organoleptic qualities of powdered milk intact while creating an effective barrier to oxidation caused by light and oxygen, for better product preservation. We’re convinced that in the near future this combination will be the first choice of many companies to reach sustainability goals and reduce costs.

Furthermore, adopting a paperboard solution with sift-proof gluing represents other advantages in terms of production. One of these is to optimise costs, as this solution costs less than an aluminium Bag-in-Box and the packaging process is faster, simpler and more cost effective.

Tacom has been using sift-proof techniques successfully for years with our dosing solutions. Powdered milk in fact is one of our most renowned products, in a sift-proof box with our Pac Spout. These technical combinations guarantee practical, measured dosing and keep the product fresher for longer. As well as powdered milk, they are also suitable for breakfast cereals, which can be packaged directly in paperboard boxes without the need for an internal bag, or dispensed using our practical integrated Cloc Spout , also used to close the box again.

We’re well aware that today more than ever nothing can be taken for granted: that’s why we’ll continue to focus on the environment, working on practical, sustainable solutions that also effectively meet our customers’ needs.