At this year's Two Sessions, academician Sun Baoguo, President of Beijing Technology and Business University and member of the Chinese Academy of Engineering, proposed promoting the recycling and utilization of food packaging materials. Suddenly, food packaging became a hot topic of discussion among people.

What is food packaging, and what percentage of the packaging industry does it account for?

Food packaging is a major component of the packaging industry, accounting for about 60% of the total market share. In recent years, due to more stringent regulations on environmental protection in China, the packaging industry in our country has seen a shift in structure, a significant decline in the number of packaging companies, and a drop in packaging product sales. As a result, the market size of the food packaging industry has also decreased. According to data, the market size of the food packaging industry in China was 603.9 billion yuan in 2020, a 0.3% increase from 2019.

Currently, China permits a wide variety of food packaging materials, including plastics, papers, metals, glass, and ceramics, all of which carry some level of safety concerns. Therefore, promoting the use of biodegradable and recyclable green packaging materials, enhancing research and development of low-cost eco-friendly packaging materials, and improving the recyclability and ease of disposal of packaging materials is of paramount importance.

To better meet people's usage needs, there has been a series of transformations in food packaging, with new directions focusing on being lighter, simpler, and safer. Concurrently, under the national push for green, low-carbon, energy-saving, and environmentally friendly practices, the food packaging industry is showing three major trends:

One, Intelligent Packaging Forms

Intelligent packaging and active packaging are two new forms of packaging that provide functionalities unattainable by traditional packaging. They further meet consumers' demands for food quality and safety, representing a new concept in future food packaging design and a trend in its development.

Packaging Materials Diversification

In recent years, to enhance food safety and reduce environmental pollution, there has been a growing trend to utilize natural high polymer materials as raw materials for the production of environmentally friendly, biodegradable packaging materials. Equipment used for food packaging is also evolving towards higher levels of automation and better dynamic accuracy to meet the ever-increasing production demands.

Packaging Technology Automation

In the context of continuously improving living standards, modern consumers have an increasing demand for refined food, leading to a trend of diversified and small-batch production. Consequently, packaging machines with multiple switching functions are emerging to better meet actual needs. To enhance the flexibility of packaging machinery and improve automation levels, microcomputer technology, modular technology, and a single-combination form are indispensable in the development of the modern food packaging industry.

As industry experts have analyzed, it is anticipated that in the near future, recyclable and eco-friendly packaging materials will become the primary trend in the packaging industry, with significant development in nanotechnology-based packaging and green packaging materials. The food packaging sector, a major hot spot, will also attract more enterprises to delve into and lay strategic groundwork. As ordinary consumers, we will witness various changes in packaging materials and formats.