Short History of Distribution Packaging in the USA Distribution packaging emerged in the 1800s as the industrial revolution blossomed and manufacturers began shipping their goods nationwide via railroad. Paper did not enter the distribution arena as protective packaging until the early 1900s, when corrugated boxes first appeared as shipping containers

Introduction Packaging can be unnecessarily expensive in a couple of ways: 1. Inadequate design results in shipment damage 2. Over-design or poor design (more protection than is required or materials being incorrectlyused) results in excessive material cost. The procedure can be broken down into seven basic steps

The best known and most widely used active packaging technologies for foods today are those engineered to remove undesirable substances from the headspace of a package through absorption, adsorption or scavenging. To achieve this goal a physical or chemical absorbent or adsorbent is incorporated in the packaging material or added to the package by means of a sachet. In most publications

Antimicrobial packaging is one of many applications of active packaging (Floros et al., 1997). Active packaging is the packaging system which possesses attributes beyond basic barrier properties which are achieved by adding active ingredients in the packaging system and/or using actively functional polymers (Han and Rooney, 2002). Antimicrobial packaging is the packaging system that is able to kill or inhibit spoilage and pathogenic microorganisms that are contaminating foods

The packaging sector is an important global industry, representing about 2% of the Gross National Product (GNP) of the developed countries. The value of the packaging industry is about 345 million euros worldwide, of which Europe represents a third. Fifty per cent of this market is packaging for food. Forecasts suggest that the sector will continue to grow in size and importance Many cooking and preservation processes still largely depend on effective packaging, for example canning, aseptic, sous vide and baking processes. Processes such as drying and freezing would be lost without protective packaging after processing to control product exposure to the effects of oxygen light, water vapour, bacterial and other contaminants. However, modern food packaging no longer has just a passive role in protecting and marketing the product. It increasingly has an active role in processing, preservation

2.1 Introduction: the role of packaging in the food chain Packaging has a significant role in the food supply chain and it is an integral part both of the food processes and the whole food supply chain. Food packaging has to perform several tasks as well as fulfilling many demands and requirements. Traditionally, a food package makes distribution easier. It has protected food from environmental conditions, such as light, oxygen, moisture, microbes, mechanical stresses and dust. Other basic tasks have been to ensure adequate labelling for providing information e.g., to the customer, and a proper convenience to the consumer, e.g., easy opening, reclosable lids and a suitable dosing mechanism. Basic requirements are good marketing properties

As we know from the definition, intelligent or smart packaging monitors and gives information about the quality of the packed food. According to Huis in't give Veld (1996) the changes taking place in the fresh food product can be categorised as (i) microbiological growth and metabolism resulting in pH- changes, formation of toxic compounds off-odours, gas and slime formation

Modified atmosphere packaging (MAPmay be defined as the enclosure of food products in gas-barrier materials in which the gaseous environment has been changed'(Young et al., 1988 Because of its substantial shelf-life extending effect, MAP has been one of the most significant and innovative growth areas in retail food packaging. The potential advantages and disadvantages of MAP have been presented by Farber (1991), Parry(1993) and Davies (1995). Whilst there is considerable information available regarding suitable gas mixtures for different food products, there is still a lack of scientific detail regarding many aspects relating to MAP. These include:

Modified Atmospheric Packaging(MAP)is a precise description of this shelf- life extension technique (Bennett 1995). In the UK, MAP mainly involves the use of three gases-carbon dioxide, nitrogen and oxygen although other gases are used elsewhere. Products are packed in various combinations of these three gases depending on the physical and chemical properties of the food

The colour stability of meat products is influenced by a large number of factors some of biochemical nature, some due to handling during slaughter and processing, and others due to packaging and storage conditions. This chapter focuses on modelling how colour shelf-life is affected by the external factors applied during packaging and storage. However, meat from different sources shows different tendencies to undergo colour deterioration and this variation in internal factors influences the developed models. Therefore some consideration will also be given to discussing how internal factors like