All You Need to Know

About Flexible Packaging

Your product is ready for packaging, but you’re not sure where to
begin. Your options are nearly limitless – rigid packaging, fin-
seal/flow-wrap packaging, form-fill-and-seal packaging. The
choice ultimately depends on what your product needs and your
specific specifications.

Flexible packaging has stormed the industry and continues to

turn heads in retail and big box stores. According to the Flexible
Packaging Association, flexible packaging represents the
second largest packaging segment in the Unites States. Food
packaging accounts for 60% of flexible packaging shipments,
retail non-food for 12%, industrial applications for 6%, consumer
products for 10%, institutional non-food for 3%, and medical/
pharmaceutical for 9%.

So why choose flexible packaging for your product? The

following facts about flexible packaging will help you determine
if it’s right for you.

Flexible Packaging vs. Rigid Packaging

Flexible packaging uses only a fourth of the 70%

amount of plastic than rigid packaging. As a Less weight
result, flexible packaging weighs 70% less
and occupies only 5% of the same amount
95%
Less space
of space. Since fewer materials are needed
in the production of flexible packaging, as
well as cheaper manufacturing and shipping
costs, flexible packaging costs much less
than its rigid counterparts.

What Makes Flexible Packaging Stand Out

All types of packaging must provide a durable barrier between the

product inside the packaging and UV rays, oxygen, and moisture.
Quality packaging not only protects the product from outside
contaminants such as these, but also maintains the aroma of the
product as well as the maximum shelf life. Flexible packaging can
accomplish all these requirements, as well as so many more.

1 2 3
Materials Used Production Methods Printing and Labeling
for for for
Flexible Packaging Flexible Packaging Flexible Packaging

To achieve these high standards, flexible packaging is

1
constructed from a film that has a low oxygen transfer
rate. The oxygen transfer rate (OTR), which all films
have, is the amount of oxygen that passes through a
certain area of film in a 24 hour period. A low OTR
number indicates only minimal oxygen is leaking past
the barrier. Foil is one of the best, with an OTR of zero,
as you can see in figure no. 1 below.
figure no. 1

The air we breathe is

Film Description OTR (cc/m2)* MVTR (g/m2)*
78% nitrogen and 20%
Foil Aluminum 0 0
EVOH Ethylene Vinyl Alcohol 0.6 100 oxygen. To further
MPET Metalized Polyester 0.95 1.2 increase the shelf life of
KPET Saran Coated PET 7.8 7.55
a package, oxygen can
PET Polyester 85 55
Nylon Nylon 95 260 be purged from the air
OPP Polypropylene 2000 8 with nitrogen before
LLDPE Polyethylene 2500 17
sealing the packaging.

In addition to OTR, film has a Moisture Vapor Transfer Rate (MVTR) that works
on the same principle as the OTR. Although LLDPE (Poly) has a higher OTR, it has
a low MVTR, making it a good candidate to be used for flexible packaging.

Flexible packaging usually takes the form of stand-up pouches,

2
which are constructed using 2 or more plastic films. These films
are laminated together using either an adhesive or heat and
pressure. You’ll often find the structure PET/Ink/LLDPE. What
does that mean? This code indicates that PET (aka Polyester or
Mylar) composes the outside layer, a good choice given the
strength of the material and its high melting point.

Ink refers to the printing on the packaging. This printing is applied to the inside of
the PET layer and covered by the next layer of film. The LLDPE (aka Poly) is used to
form the inside layer since it offers a moisture barrier and has a low melting point.
The LLDPE is what melts together to form the seal on the stand-up pouch.

In addition to the construction of the flexible packaging, the thickness of the film
has to be considered. The unit used to specify the thickness of a film is “Mils” or
“Thou.” Film typically ranges from 3-5 Mils (Thous).

Mil (Thou) = .001 Inch Confused yet?

Gauge (ga) = .00001 inch or .01 Mil To summarize, the
Micron (µ) = .00003937 inch or .03937 Mil outside layer (PET) is
0.48 Mil thick and the
The individual layers of film are sometimes described inside layer (LLDPE) is
with interchangeable measurements, which can be 4.5 Mil thick, totalling 5
confusing. For example, Mil for the thickness of
the entire bag.
48 ga PET / Ink / 115µ LLDPE

We have already mentioned printing a few times, so how is it

3
applied to flexible packaging? The product inside the packaging
needs to be protected from the ink that’s used in this process. To
do so, the reverse image is printed on the inside of the outer
layer of film so that it’s sandwiched in the middle of two layers.
This process if called Reverse Trap Printing.

In some cases, Reverse Trap Printing doesn’t work because the

film being used is not transparent. Packagers instead use a
printing process known as Surface Print: when the printing is
applied to the outside of the film.

Recycling vs. Biodegrade in a Landfill?

The familiar recycle code symbol we’ve all seen on plastic

packaging refers to a resin code that is assigned to a particular
plastic (Polymer). Each layer of film used for flexible packaging has
a code of 1 to 5, but once these layers are laminated together, the
resulting material becomes a 7, or “other” as you see in Figure no.
2. Because of this, most laminated flexible pouches don’t display a
resin code.

Resin Code Description Uses

PET, PETE Plastic bottles (Water, Juice, Soda, Ketchup…)

1
(Polyester) Oven Bags, Microwaveable food trays
HDPE Non-food bottles (Shampoo, Cleaners, Motor oil)
2
(High Density Polyethylene) Plastic Lumber, Flower Pots, Recycling bins…
PVD [Vinyl] Shrink Wrap, Deli & Meat Wrap, Pipe, Siding,
3
(Polyvinyl Chloride) Window Frames, Decking, Flooring…
LDPE Bags (Bread, Produce, Garbage, Frozen Food…)
4
(Low Density Polyethylene) Toys, Squeezable Bottles, Container Lids…
PP Containers (Yogurt, Margarine, Deli Foods…)
5
(Polypropylene) Medicine Bottles, Bottle Caps, Carpeting…
PS Cups, Plates, Bowls, Meat Trays, CD Cases,
6
(Polystyrene) Packing Peanuts, Insulation…
OTHER Reusable water bottles, Barrier Layers,
7
(Other or Multi-layer resin) Oven Baking Bags, Custome Packaging

Counteractively, most plastic films take a significant amount of time

to decompose once they enter a landfill – up to hundreds of years!
Recently, scientists have discovered that when starch is introduced
to the poly, the decomposition process is reduced to mere months
instead of centuries. This poly film is designed to decompose when
it comes in contact with heat, moisture, and UV rays.

Although this discovery has helped films biodegrade more quickly,

it has also hindered the packaging process. The entities that prompt
the film to biodegrade – heat, moisture, and light – are found in a
landfill, yes, but also along the supply path. Fluorescent lights in
retail stores, humidity during shipping, and heat in the warehouse
all have to be controlled to maintain the integrity of the packaging.
No one wants to find a stand-up pouch filled with product
decomposing on the store shelf after only a few weeks or months!
Although this Poly film has many diverse uses, it can be used for
food packaging only in some circumstances.

Need Assistance?

If you are still unsure if flexible packaging would suit your product,
the best way to make an educated decision is to sit down with a
packaging professional during a development consultation.
During this meeting, you will have the opportunity to discuss your
objectives, draw detailed plans, list
appropriate details, and brainstorm Get Your

Answers Today
how to save costs.

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