Fruits and vegetables

KIDV has identified a number of important developments that affect packaging in the fruit and vegetable industry. We can give your organisation a wealth of tips to help you tap into these trends:

• The growth of the convenience segment, to offer consumers as much convenience as possible. Take bags of lettuce and other pre-cut vegetables for instance, or other convenient products such as snack tomatoes and (fruit) salads, as well as vegetables and fruits featuring in meal boxes.
  Portion packs and fresh packs can prevent food waste. By buying a measured quantity, usually all fruit and vegetables are consumed. However, if a pack is not needed, do not use it. If the packaging is still needed, make sure that it can be easily processed in the current waste system. Use mono-materials and ensure that the consumer can dispose of the packaging after use in the correct waste bin, so that it can be recycled. The KIDV has developed Recycle Checks for different materials, which companies can use to check whether their packaging is recyclable under the current system. Please take note of the Single Use Plastics directive that has been in force since July 2021.  
  
• Increase in on-the-go consumption.Consumption outside the home often requires a different type of packaging. For example, a meal salad where the lettuce and other ingredients are in a plastic tray and a separate bag for the dressing or nuts is included. Or pre-cut pieces of pineapple and mango in a plastic tray with a fork. In this way, these meals and snacks can be easily consumed on the go (or at home). If the packaging is not necessary, try to avoid it. In addition, consider the disposal method after use in the design. Are there any packaging parts that are litter-sensitive? Try to avoid loose parts or attach them to the packaging. Also provide the packaging with disposal instructions. This will enable the consumer to separate waste and dispose of the various materials in the correct bin. Finally, please take note of the Single Use Plastics directive that has been in force since July 2021. 
  
• Society’s reluctance to use plastic packaging materials.
  Consumers quickly think 'plastic is bad' and are often surprised by the plastic packaging around unprocessed fruit and vegetables. In many cases this packaging does have a function. For example, a tray and foil around the ripe avocados offer protection during transport and a foil around the cucumber keeps it fresh for longer. Looking at the environmental impact of the total product-packaging combination, on average 90% of the impact is in the product and 10% is in the packaging. Therefore, it is sometimes better to pack the product rather than let it spoil or damage and no longer be eaten. But remain critical: is the packaging really necessary, or can it be done without? Or can the cucumber grown nearby in the summer months also be sold without foil?   
• Using recycled packaging material.
  The use of recycled packaging material is already common for glass, metal and paper/cardboard. For plastic, this is sometimes still difficult, especially when recycled plastic is used in new food packaging, because of food safety requirements. Read more about the use of recycled material here (only available in Dutch).
• Using biobased packaging material.
  We also see the application of bio-based packaging materials in the fruit and vegetable sector. Paper and cardboard are well-known bio-based packaging materials, but there are also fairly new examples, such as the use of elephant grass or residual products from tomato plants. There are different types of biobased plastics. Some have the same molecular structure as fossil-based plastics. These biobased plastics can be mixed with fossil plastics in recycling and have the same properties, such as melting temperature or air permeability. An example of this is bio-PE, which is made from sugar cane and is used in HDPE bottles, among other things.
  
  There are also plastics made from renewable raw materials that have a different molecular structure than the conventional fossil plastics. They therefore have different properties. Some variants are, for instance, compostable or allow more oxygen to pass through, which makes them especially suitable for packaging certain fruit and vegetables. Examples are PLA and starch. PLA is used in trays and foils and starch in plastic bags. Read more about biobased and compostable packaging here.
• Ambitions of governments and companies to introduce reusable and recyclable packaging.Packaging must comply with the applicable laws and regulations. In recent years, the European Commission and the Dutch government have introduced new proposals, adopted directives and are implementing action programmes, among other things to increase the recyclability and reuse of packaging and to reduce the amount of waste. Keep informed of these developments so that you can respond to future legislation in a timely manner and thereby distinguish your company from other companies as a frontrunner in the field of sustainability. KIDV maintains an overview of changes in legislation and regulations, such as the new recycling targets, adjustments to the essential requirements for packaging and the approach to single-use plastics, and translates these developments into practice for packaging. This overview can be found here (only available in Dutch).
  
  KIDV has also developed recycle checks with which companies can assess for themselves whether a package is recyclable under the current system. These can be found here. 

Anyone who starts working with sustainable packaging will often quickly discover that there is more to it than just using less or different material. To develop successful sustainable packaging, you have to look at the packaging process and logistics, at customers’ purchasing and disposal behaviour, and at your company’s packaging and sustainability strategy. For more information and tips, visit the KIDV Five Perspectives on Sustainable Packaging.

The Dutch sector organisation GroentenFruit Huis has drawn up a 2019-2022 Sector Innovation Plan for Sustainable Packaging in close cooperation with KIDV. This plan sets out ambitions, objectives, and concrete measures to reduce the environmental impact of packaging, such as by using less material in packaging and by making packaging fully recyclable and reusable. The sector innovation plan is intended as a framework to encourage companies to set out and work on making their packaging more sustainable in cooperation with suppliers and buyers.

Greenport West-Holland, in collaboration with KIDV and Partners for Innovation, has drawn up a decision tree to help entrepreneurs in the AGF sector make their packaging more sustainable. The decision tree helps to set goals and to choose the right strategy. Those who go through it step by step will arrive at a suitable choice of packaging, whether it is primary (consumer packaging), secondary (transport packaging) or tertiary packaging (for loading and transport). Along the way, companies receive information on topics such as the different functions of packaging, recycling and reuse, the logistics chain, the Sustainable Packaging Sectoral Plan, European and national packaging policies (including those of other countries) and legislation and regulations. The decision tree can be downloaded free of charge from www.duurzaamverpakkentuinbouw.nl.