Global Downturn Drives Change in Liquid Food Packaging Design

BASINGSTOKE, England - The combined pressures of the economic downturn and volatile energy and packaging materials prices have intensified competition and created fundamental change in food and beverage markets over the last two years according to a new report published by beverage research specialists, Canadean. Many brand owners throughout the world have been forced to re-configure their existing product ranges and develop new categories, products and packaging designs aimed at more cost-conscious, budget-restricted consumers.

And nowhere is this more evident than in the ambient liquid food sector. Here, the slowdown in consumer spending is accelerating the growth in discount stores especially in North America and Europe. This is causing many other large retail food chains to extend their private label brands to meet rising consumer demand for better value, compete and retain market share.

These market trends are spawning a new range of products and brands. These in turn are driving demand for new packaging types and designs more frequently aimed at offering simplicity, cost-reduction and materials savings without sacrificing the benefits of convenient, easy-to-use and environment-friendly packaging design.

These are the key findings of the new special interest report by Canadean entitled “Innovation in Liquid Food Packaging, 2009″.

Focusing primarily on new packaging developments and designs within the ambient heat-processed liquid food market, the report also contains an overview of the global liquid food market and an assessment of the current drivers of change from a retail, food processing and packaging perspective.

Other key findings include:

A continued shift towards plastics (especially flexible plastics and pouches) driven by demands for cost and materials reduction and a need for greater versatility in sizes, shapes and designs

Increased presence of plastics pots for value-added, single portion products, for some traditionally canned products (fruit & vegetables and soups for example)

Growth of liquid carton usage for condensed and evaporated milks

Greater diversification of packaging choice for tomato products including aseptic cartons, tubes, flexible bags and bag-in-box

Increased use of shallow plastic pots and aluminium trays for ready meals, including innovations such as microwavable portion pots for baked beans

Together these factors mean that, in spite of a general slowdown in consumer spending throughout the world, and intense pressure on margins, packaging innovation in the liquid food sector remains rife. It continues to play a key role and remains at the leading edge of marketing and new brand development in the changed market conditions.

Further details

“Innovation in Liquid Food Packaging, 2009″ is a new special interest report from Canadean Limited. A companion to the ‘Innovation in Beverage Packaging’ study (published in October 2008), the report presents a concise but comprehensive overview of global developments in ambient liquid food packaging design over the last two years, including a review of the global market from a retail, food processing and packaging perspective, and an assessment of the growing impact of private label.

Editor’s Note:

Canadean is the beverage industry information specialist, providing market research, reports, databases and consulting on the global beverage, beverage packaging and liquid food markets.

With headquarters in the UK but with offices around the world, Canadean has built a reputation as the benchmark for global beverage market intelligence. Local operations are now based in Madrid, Buenos Aires, Mexico City, Hong Kong, Beijing, Shanghai and Sydney.

For further information about this report, please contact: Dominic Cakebread, tel +44(0)1256-394269 or Frances Hicks, tel +44(0)1256-394251 Issued by the Corporate Marketing Department of Canadean Ltd, the leading global research company. Canadean Limited 12 Faraday Court Rankine Road Basingstoke Hants RG24 8PF United Kingdom T +44(0)1256-394210 F +44(0)1256-394201 Email: sales@canadean.com Website: www.canadean.com

Source: Canadean Limited

For further information about this report, please contact:, Dominic Cakebread, tel +44(0)1256-394269 or Frances Hicks, tel +44(0)1256-394251; Canadean Limited, 12 Faraday Court, Rankine Road, Basingstoke, Hants, RG24 8PF, United Kingdom, T +44(0)1256-394210, F +44(0)1256-394201, Email: sales at canadean.com