Design and development of large rigid plastic packaging for olives

Abstract

The main function of packaging in the context of the food industry is to store, to promote an increase in the lifetime of products and to facilitate their transport. In recent years there has been a growing demand for plastic packaging for food applications, leading to the optimization of existing packagings. In order to keep products with the desired quality they need to display good barrier properties to gases, vapors and smells. Currently, the barrier in plastic packaging is achieved by the combination of several materials, so called multi-layer packaging or by the use of rigid packaging with preserves (examples brine and oil solutions). This work aims at developing a rigid plastic packaging for food industry, with the following requirements: extend the lifetime of the product, enable the sterilization process, impermeable to oxygen, and avoid the use of preserve solutions which often display high salt and pH levels.