Paired with a rigid container, film seal packaging provides a flexible solution for an incredible range of food products. From fresh-cut produce to ready-to-eat snacks, plastic film has become a leading design in modern food packaging.
Lightweight, versatile, and tamper-evident, film packaging offers a format that meets the demands of both consumers and operations while directly enabling more innovative food product development.
As foodservice and retail environments evolve to feature more diverse grab-and-go offerings, film is playing a central role in shaping how fresh products are protected and presented to customers. In this article, we explain why.
What is Film Packaging?
Film packaging refers to any flexible plastic material used to seal products during storage, transport, and retail display.
Packaging film has become a widely used solution across countless industries. Its adaptability makes it suitable for everything from pharmaceutical products to electronics. For food products, it is commonly used as a barrier layer that is paired with a rigid container to extend shelf life.
In some packaging designs, film lidding is paired with a rigid lid, but film can also function as a standalone seal without the need for rigid lidding. Some film lids are designed for one-time use, while peel-and-reseal designs use scored or flanged packaging to allow customers to re-seal the container for multiple uses.
Common Types of Film Packaging
A variety of plastics are employed in film packaging. Some of the most widely used materials include:
- Polyethylene (PE): Available in low-density (LDPE) and high-density (HDPE) forms, polyethylene is one of the most common plastics used in film packaging. It’s known for its flexibility, moisture resistance, and durability, and is often used in industrial and non-food applications.
- Polypropylene (PP): Polypropylene films offer excellent clarity and resistance to moisture, grease, and chemicals. They are often chosen for consumer products, textiles, and snack food wrappers due to their strength and lightweight nature.
- Polyvinyl chloride (PVC): PVC films are known for their clarity and ability to tightly cling to products, making them common in shrink wrap applications.
- Polyethylene terephthalate (PET): PET films are valued for their strength, thermal stability, and barrier properties. They're frequently used in both food and non-food packaging where durability and product visibility are key.
When it comes to food applications, PET and PP are among the most widely used due to their proven safety, barrier performance, and compliance with regulatory standards.
High Barrier Vs. Standard Barrier Film Packaging
While most food packaging films offer protection against moisture and contaminants, high barrier films are engineered to provide significantly greater resistance to oxygen, vapor, and light. These specialized materials (often used for vacuum-sealed products, shelf-stable meals, and meats) typically incorporate multiple layers or coatings to extend shelf life and preserve sensitive contents. By contrast, standard barrier films are more commonly used for fresh (often refrigerated) foods with comparatively short target shelf lives, where they offer a balance of clarity and protection.
Key Benefits of Plastic Film Packaging for Food
In conjunction with rigid containers, plastic film offers a number of advantages that make it well-suited for fresh and prepared food packaging.
- Operational simplicity: Film lidding can be applied across a variety of rigid container sizes using the same sealing dimensions, allowing food producers and retailers to streamline changeovers and reduce complexity on the line to optimize food packaging costs.
- Shelf appeal through clarity: High-clarity films provide full product visibility, allowing consumers to see what they’re buying, a key driver of trust and purchasing decisions in grab-and-go settings.
- Tamper evidence: Once sealed, film lids offer a visible indication of package integrity. This built-in safety feature gives consumers peace of mind while supporting food safety standards.
- Freshness and barrier protection: Film packaging helps extend shelf life by creating a tight barrier against contaminants, moisture, and oxygen, keeping products fresh to reduce waste and deliver a quality customer experience.
- Sustainability potential: Films can readily be sourced from recyclable or recycled materials, such as rPET, without sacrificing clarity or performance, helping brands reduce their environmental impact and meet sustainability goals. The right film lid design also uses less plastic. For example, Lacerta’s Seal N’ Flip™ design can reduce plastic use by up to 50% compared to traditional clamshell containers, an efficiency that drives up 25% cost reduction.
Film Packaging Trends
While the fundamentals of film packaging are well understood, new innovations in material use and packaging design are pushing the market forward, even as broader trends continue to elevate the economic value of film seal packaging.
1. Mono-Material for a Recyclability Boost
Layering multiple materials (like PET along with paper or aluminum) can add different levels of protection but risks reducing recyclability. Mono-material designs are being increasingly sought after due to their enhanced ease of recyclability; they can be recycled just like any other material made from recyclable polymers. With the right design, a 100% polymer film layer can provide ample protection for fresh food products.
2. Health-Conscious Consumers Expect Transparency
More health-conscious consumers are expecting brands to deliver greater transparency (both literally and figuratively) into the quality of food products and ingredients. Film seal packaging can deliver. Snack Food & Wholesale Bakery notes that “the growing importance of health and wellness has propelled the use of transparent films and windows. See-through packaging enables consumers to see the quality and freshness of the contents, which underscores the promise of a wholesome, healthy product.”
3. Adopting Film to Reduce Material Usage
An increasing focus on sustainable packaging design is driving interest in film seal packaging. In an article on new horizons in produce packaging, ProduceBusiness notes that many grocers are increasing their preference for film-based containers for fresh grab-and-go food because film uses less material than traditional alternatives like clamshell containers. As we explore below, new design innovations have the potential to push these savings even further.
4. Flexible Film Streamlines Adaptable Product Lineups
The adaptability of plastic film makes it a natural fit for the expanding range of private label, seasonal, and limited-run offerings in today’s grocery market. Whether used by in-store operations or processors serving multiple retail programs, flexible film enables quick format changes, smaller production runs, and a variety of product configurations without requiring major equipment or packaging overhauls.
5. Innovative Design Creates a Fresh Look and Saves Plastic
New approaches to package geometry are reshaping how film-sealed containers balance form and function. Seal N’ Flip is a great example: by relocating the lidding film to the bottom, it not only lowers plastic use but also puts the product front and center for stronger shelf appeal.
Film Packaging Innovation in Action: Seal N’ Flip™
Seal N’ Flip reimagines the standard film-sealed container by flipping the lidding film to the bottom, reducing plastic use by up to 50% and lowering packaging costs by as much as 25% compared to traditional clamshells.
This product-forward format enhances product visibility on the shelf, simplifies merchandising, and supports a wide range of fresh food applications. Built for efficiency and visual impact, Seal N’ Flip reflects how film seal food packaging continues to advance in both form and function.
Learn more about how Seal N’ Flip can help cut costs, reduce waste, and win the grab-and-go category.
