Paper and paperboard are made from cellulose fibers, which are obtained from trees, recovered papers and annual plant fibers like cereal straws. A wide range of paper and paperboard is used in packaging today – from lightweight infusible tissues for tea and coffee bags to heavy duty boards used in distribution.
Paper and paperboard have been used as the most important packaging materials for years. The production of packaging paper and paperboard grades in the European Union is around 30 million tons per year. It is estimated that half of that volume comes into contact with food.
One of the earliest references to the use of paper for packaging food products is a patent taken out by Charles Hildeyerd on 16 February 1665 for ‘The way and art of making blew paper used by sugar-bakers and others’.
The use of paper and paperboard for packaging purposes accelerated during the latter part of the nineteenth century to meet the needs of manufacturing industry. The manufacture of paper had progressed from a laborious manual operation, one sheet at a time, to continuous high-speed production with wood pulp replacing rags as the main raw material.
Paper and board can be used in contact with food in very different ways, either directly or indirectly, and either alone or laminated with other materials such as plastic or metal foil. In the latter case, so-called "functional barriers" are aimed at suppressing any substance transfer between food and the base paper material.
Consumer expectations for packaged food include aspects such as health, safety, reasonable price, convenience, extended shelf life and environmental friendliness. Paper and paperboard are generally the cheapest, eco-friendly and sustainable.
The results of safety tests carried out on paper products used as food packaging indicate that papers made from virgin fibers are characterized by low penetration of chemical substances to the packed product, whereas in the case of recycled paper grades the contamination risk is very high.
Uses of paper and paperboard can be found in packaging all the main categories of food, such as:
*dry food products – cereals, biscuits, bread and baked products, tea, coffee, sugar, flour, dry food mixes, etc
*frozen foods, chilled foods and ice cream
*liquid foods and beverages – juice drinks, milk and milk derived products
*chocolate and sugar confectionery
*fast foods
*fresh produce – fruit, vegetables, meat and fish
Paper packaging
