Safety, Sanitation Drive Foodservice Packaging

摘要

Absolutely. There has definitely been a lot of misinformation around foodservice packaging and the perceived increase of waste from it. Unfortunately, due to COVID, the foodservice industry has been one of the hardest hit. In addition to restaurants, foodservice packaging is used in segments like travel, hospitality, stadiums and arenas, catering and events, and business and school cafeterias. Looking at that list, many of those segments suffered closures or reduced patronage throughout 2020 and have yet to recover. In the restaurant sector, many operators had to pivot from dine-in to to-go only. With resurgences in virus outbreaks, that pivot may have happened multiple times in the past 10 months. With operators trying to stay afloat, they have relied heavily on foodservice packaging to provide customers with the products they desire. As they did with so many places, customers had to interact differently with the restaurants they enjoy. Much of what had been consumed outside of the home, like at a restaurant, in the office, or during school, is now being eaten in the consumer's own kitchen. This has increased the amount of foodservice packaging that the consumer sees and has to dispose of within their own home. That is where the "influx" of packaging myth came from. It doesn't mean that more packaging is being used, but that everything we consume is regularly being directed through one channel. It's like the increased number of boxes delivered to homes because people aren't getting those items delivered to offices or going out to shop at retail establishments. It doesn't mean we're purchasing more because shipping boxes are piling up in the garage, just differently.