ExxonMobil, Alico, and Kuraray have collectively designed a high-performance shrink barrier bag to protect fresh meats against oxygen and humidity without relying on PET or PVDC.
The partners sought to achieve an ‘optimal’ balance between mechanical properties – flexibility, toughness, oxygen barrier properties, and high shrinkage range, among others – and optical properties like gloss and transparency.
This resulted in Termoflex +B, a locally-produced shrink barrier bag that utilizes Exceed Tough+ m 0512 – a product from the ExxonMobil Signature Polymers polyolefin portfolio brand – with orientable EVOH grades from Kuraray’s EVAL product offerings.
The bag reportedly ‘matched or exceeded’ the performance of imported solutions. At the same time, it is designed to negate the need for PET and PVDC barriers while maintaining ‘optimal’ barrier properties.
Among its field trials were shelf life tests conducted with pork and beef; meats packaged in Termoflex +B were compared with the same cuts packaged in the incumbent solution. Both were refrigerated at 4°C and assessed against microbiological, physiochemical, and sensory parameters every week; the full results of the case study are available here.
Compared to a conventional solution, Termoflex +B is said to improve oxygen transmission rate (OTR) at high humidity and achieve a ‘comparable’ shelf life for fresh meats – all while pursuing a more efficient and sustainability-minded design.
Now the packaging is being rolled out among local meat producers in Colombia, including family pork business Super Cerdo Paisa.
Another food-contact shrink bag solution from adapa Group was previously the recipient of the PackTheFuture Award 2023. Designed in line with the CEFLEX Design for a Circular Economy Guideline, the polyethylene pack offers EVOH high barrier instead of PA layers or PVDC barriers.
In the UK, meanwhile, flexible vacuum packaging for meat products have caused controversy. Several retailers have incorporated vacuum-packed minced meat into their plastic reduction strategies, including Lidl, Asda, Iceland, and Sainsbury’s – but consumers expressed their dissatisfaction with the latter, describing it as ‘awful’ due to its impact on the meat’s texture and the requirement to recycle it in-store (whereas the previous rigid trays had been home-recyclable).
Robert Lilienfeld, founder and executive director of sustainable packaging think tank SPRING, described the Sainsbury’s solution as a “complete failure”, since its impact on the minced meat’s appearance would discourage consumers from buying and ultimately create more food waste.
In response to this kind of backlash, retailers have been turning back to plastic trays, with Iceland recently re-integrating plastic trays into its beef and pork mince lineups.
If you liked this story, you might also enjoy:
Reuse vs. single use – which is better for the environment?
Sustainable Innovation Report 2025: Current trends and future priorities
What can the world learn from South Korea’s world-leading performance in plastics circularity?
No comments yet