Food packaging is an all important detail in the food industry. Consumers pay more for food that is well packaged in a container that will simultaneously protect the food sufficiently, and also will showcase the item in a way that catches their eye. Since a lot of times a consumer cannot actually see the food that is in the container, the presentation of the food packaging may be the single most important thing to getting a consumer to try it.

With an item such as fresh produce, it is a slightly different situation with its own set of unique challenges. Fresh produce is an item that consumers demand that they be able to see before they buy it. They need to be assured that it is fresh and have the ability to inspect the fruit or vegetable prior to purchase. That is the reason why you will find that so much produce is usually presented for purchase at market with no food packaging at all. While other items are sold individually with a per unit cost, fresh produce on the other hand, is closely scrutinized by the consumer, and traditionally sold by weight.

Fruits and vegetables are commodities, in that they all share pretty much the same characteristics. This makes it difficult to attach a brand identity to any specific companies fruit. Yet while it may be difficult, it is not necessarily impossible. These brands achieved their widespread name recognition most likely because they are large grower/ pickers that have been able to consistently supply quality fruit on a widespread scale for many years now. It would be very difficult for a smaller and/ or newer firm to come in a achieve that type of brand reverberation among consumers. However food packaging is a underrated secret weapon a firm can use to gain a competitive advantage over the produce competition.

There are two distinct benefits for the produce distributor. The first benefit is protection. Produce is obviously less susceptible to damage and bruising in the right packaging, which keeps it fresh for longer and remains attractive looking to the consumer. Oddly enough, that is exactly why most produce goes without packaging, so that visual inspection is required to reveal which is the best fruit, which gets bought first.

The second and possibly most important benefit is the fact that when you have produce packed in food packaging such as a clear plastic clamshell container, you have a greater ability to project a brand image with the use of a full color label, which instantly catches the eye of a consumer and pulls them in for a closer look, that look which then confirms to the consumer that your produce is the superior piece of fruit or vegetable.