444 Novel food packaging techniques 21.2.5 Environmental stresses nvironmental aspects should be taken into account as far as possible in the optimized package. The relevant issues include the need for low environmental stresses from the packaging material and packaging, the necessity of a low ratio of package weight to product weight, the need for as little of the package volume to be waste as possible, and the incineration possibilities of different packaging materials 21.3 The VTT Precision Packaging Concept The VTT Precision Packaging Concept includes several phases(see Fig. 21.2) The first task is to specify the required shelf-life for a foodstuff and determine the basic requirements for this food package, e.g. by using shelf-life prediction models. After that it is possible to choose different combinations of package types and to optimize the package. Optimization is performed in four steps: (i) scoring the tested package types, (ii) evaluating the importance of package characteristics, (iii)calculating the coefficients for each of the characteristics, and(iv) calculating the optimization result of each of the tested package types 21.3.1 Determination of basic requirements for packaging Precision packaging is based on a pre-determined minimum shelf-life needed to allow the packed foodstuff to reach the consumer's table from the factory. The shelf-life is naturally chosen to suit the market and the business strategy of the company. A longer shelf-life is needed for an export market than for a domestic Minimum required shelf-life for the food stuff Minimu oplimIzation scoring the selected, alternative packaging type calculating the coefficient for the characteristic OPTIMAL PACKAGE21.2.5 Environmental stresses Environmental aspects should be taken into account as far as possible in the optimized package. The relevant issues include the need for low environmental stresses from the packaging material and packaging, the necessity of a low ratio of package weight to product weight, the need for as little of the package volume to be waste as possible, and the incineration possibilities of different packaging materials. 21.3 The VTT Precision Packaging Concept The VTT Precision Packaging Concept includes several phases (see Fig. 21.2). The first task is to specify the required shelf-life for a foodstuff and determine the basic requirements for this food package, e.g. by using shelf-life prediction models. After that it is possible to choose different combinations of package types and to optimize the package. Optimization is performed in four steps: (i) scoring the tested package types, (ii) evaluating the importance of package characteristics, (iii) calculating the coefficients for each of the characteristics, and (iv) calculating the optimization result of each of the tested package types. 21.3.1 Determination of basic requirements for packaging Precision packaging is based on a pre-determined minimum shelf-life needed to allow the packed foodstuff to reach the consumer’s table from the factory. The shelf-life is naturally chosen to suit the market and the business strategy of the company. A longer shelf-life is needed for an export market than for a domestic market. Fig. 21.2 A scheme for determining the optimal package. 444 Novel food packaging techniques