As our lives continue to race along at breakneck speed, it’s no surprise that many of us venture to the frozen and chilled food aisles in our supermarket.

 

The convenience of taking a pre-prepared meal and shoving it in the microwave or oven might horrify the foodies, but it’s a market that continues to be strong.

 

According to the Chilled Food Association, the sector is valued at just under £9bn and grew 83% between 1999 and 2010. Frozen food is estimated to be worth around £5bn. There are no signs that this market will shrink any time soon.

 

But despite a solid set of financial figures, the fridge’n’freezer sectors throw up all kinds of challenges for packaging. There’s an obvious need to protect the food while also reducing the amount of material in cold and sometimes wet environments. And to innovate is tricky in a sector that sells largely on value.

 

 

 

However, that hasn’t stopped many from trying and there are examples of packaging that tick both the innovation and lightweighting boxes.

 

Typically, the packaging in the chilled and frozen food sector is functional, to say the least. With frozen in particular, the packaging is there to simply to keep the food as fresh as possible; making it innovative isn’t always on the top of a manufacturer’s agenda.

 

“In the frozen market, the product is always going to be sealed,” explains Packology joint managing director Robert Herridge. “The downside is that you can’t see the product and you have to rely on strong branding.”

 

Ziggurat Brands managing director Adrian Collins recalls a project for a manufacturer of frozen pizzas. The aim was to design a box that could assist in the cooking process; frozen pizzas have the problem, once cooked, of having solid, crunchy crusts but a soggy interior. The idea proposed was to incorporate an aluminum circle around the outside of the pizza. It was complex, innovative and, according to Collins, produced “wonderful results”.

 

“But they bottled out,” he says. “The problem is that 70% of pizzas are sold on deals. Frozen and premium packaging don’t make happy bedfellows. There is no brand loyalty in that sector.”

 

So while it ultimately boils down to cost in the frozen sector, Collins suggests there might be slightly more room for maneuver in the chilled market. “The chiller cabinet is where we have some fun and there’s more dwell time there,” he says.

 

It’s also where some are being more creative with their structure. Sirane is one pack manufacturer that is relishing the opportunity to take new concepts and designs to chilled food firms. One of its latest products targets the fish sector and scooped a prize at this year’s UK Supermeat and Fish awards. The Sira Cook pack for the Saucy Fish Company (see right) allows shoppers to cook a fish fillet straight from the display pack, either in the oven or microwave.

 

Functionality

“Reducing weight in packaging is just one component but there is another dynamic – functionality,” explains Sirane director for product and process development Ian Beardsall. “If people are driven simply by weight reduction then it limits you.”

 

Beardsall says that the design has creates a double win for consumers; it does away with any additional aluminum trays making it lighter, while also adding convenience for the shopper. The next challenge is to take the concept to the next level and go beyond fish.

 

“There are other things we can do such as finding ways to add flavor to the food during the cooking process,” he adds. “We have the manufacturing capability and we will design and build our own machinery or modify existing kit. We take a scientific approach.”

 

Stacy Castro, design director at agency Webb deVlam, takes a different view. “Refrigerated meats are now coming in reusable packaging. While the packaging uses more plastic, this keeps the food fresh for longer rather than a plastic pouch that may rip easily and let air in. It’s green because there is less waste and it’s reusable.”

 

There’s also an opportunity to target the lunchtime shopper. Both Ziggurat’s Collins and Webb deVlam’s Castro reckon that packaging can innovate further in this sector.

 

“The chiller cabinet could be good for that as supermarkets are now providing an alternative to the local sandwich bar,” says Collins. “At the moment your sandwich requirements are quite limited if you have a particular dietary requirement.”

 

Castro adds: “Lunch kits are not new to the market but what is new is the ability to control how much of each ingredient is used. Customization makes the product feel less processed and more homemade.”

 

The sandwich market is one that Alexir Partnership has its sights on. Tom Sene, sales director at the design, manufacturing and co-packing firm, believes that a move away from plastic packaging to cartonboard, hasn’t just helped the recyclability of the product; it’s also given the pack a premium look.

 

One of Alexir’s latest creations is the Fresh & Naked salad pack for G’s Marketing. The pack features a barrier layer that allows for direct food contact and also keeps the food fresh. “With board packaging we have to be innovative,” he says. “The advantage with board is that you can print on it but the product also has to have a shelf life. We can get a shelf life of seven days.”

 

A fresh challenge

Both at Alexir and Sirane, this type of innovation takes a scientific approach. Sirane, for instance, has a ‘test kitchen’, where packs are put through their paces before they go to market. And it is freshness that poses the greatest challenge.

 

“In refrigerated foods, freshness is probably the most critical thing a brand wants to communicate,” says Webb deVlam’s Castro. “How to show the product can be a challenge and opens the door for innovation.”

 

Ironically, claims Ziggurat’s Collins, frozen food is actually fresher. That itself should be picked up on by the sector as a whole. “Frozen food has been the same for the last 15 years,” he says. “It isn’t getting its story across and is fresher than people think. It’s about standing apart. Cook [a frozen meals company] has done this by moving their own products into their own freezer cabinets in-store. One sells ready meals and the other sells puddings.”

 

For frozen it’s all about the visual look of the packaging although even this has its pitfalls; an image of sumptuous food might catch the eye of the shopper.

 

However, if the product comes out of the oven looking less than appetizing then the brand has a problem. “You have a credibility gap,” says Collins.

 

The challenges for designers and manufacturers appear to be threefold: to make the pack stand out from the competition in a crowded market; to protect the product and keep it fresh for longer; and to continue the drive to reduce the levels of packaging and ensure that packs are lighter.

 

With more of us opting for the microwavable or oven-ready option, the market is set to continue its steady rise. The challenges is to come up with packaging that ticks all the boxes.