Miller Magazine Issue: 143 November 2021

61 COVER STORY MILLER / november 2021 Packaging is of great importance in the food sector in terms of food safety. Innovation in packaging is the driving force for the industry. Considering the annual food waste reaching 1.3 billion tons, it must be known that this waste will decrease day by day thanks to packaging solutions that prevent food spoilage and dam- age to products in order to reduce food waste. Increasing packaging demand and the population expected to grow by 40 percent until 2030 will bring along the problem of ur- banization. The problem of globalization brings along the need to transport food farther, cheaper and safer. Changing lifestyles, di- etary habits, increasing disposable income, and aging population factors also drive the development in the packaging industry. The significance of packaging can be assessed from various as- pects. Conserving the product in healthful conditions, recyclable raw material, and the processes including design are each quite important. Packaging design is of vital importance, especially in the retail sector where the commercial life movement is evident. The three-dimen- sional design of the packaging, the information on the packaging, and graphic design elements all play a role as a marketing tool for brands. It has become an integral part of this process, as it engages at every stage including the initial product development, design, adaptation to market requirements, production, conservation, stor- age, transportation, distribution, advertising, sales, and end-use. In short, the packaging is not only a complementary tool that con- serves the product inside, but also a part of the product. Packaging especially in foodstuffs undertakes functions in terms of product health, quality, and providing information. These are concrete indi- cators related to packaging that influence the consumer’s decision. The size of the global packaging industry exports in 2019 amounted to approximately 300 billion dollars. Plastic packaging accounts for 55.5% and paper-cardboard packaging for 30.4% of world packaging exports. Other packaging product groups ex- ported are metal, glass, and wooden packaging respectively. The world’s largest packaging exporting countries are China, Germany, the USA, Italy, Japan, and France. Innovative technologies in packaging systems