Smart packaging: What consumers want

Smart packaging is necessary for not only the supply chain, but also the consumer, according to Dr. Paul Butler, Smart Packaging Consultant and Academic Visitor of the Department of Materials at the University of Oxford in the United Kingdom.

Abbey Lewis-ReinholdtAssistant Editor

Feb 29th, 2004

Butler mentions that more and more consumers are finding that smart packaging is necessary because of their rapidly changing lifestyles, the convenience, and the emotional appeal. He said that consumers want their packaging to help them save money and time, provide entertainment, and help keep them healthy.

What's ahead

Some packaging technology to look forward to in the future: a beverage that will chill itself, food products with indicators that will alert consumers when the food is unsafe, and containers that dispense sticky liquids without waste or mess. In conclusion, he added that the future of packaging lies with smart packaging, so-called value-added consumer packaging that does more than contain product. This includes the incorporation of sound and vision in packaging, and the implementation of new materials to be developed or discovered that will continue to enhance brands and provide real consumer benefits.

The above information was delivered at a speech during the Intelligent and Smart Packaging USA 2004 seminar in Las Vegas that took place late January.

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