Out of all the types of products that you may need to package, cold items can be one of the more challenging options. Your packaging must keep the product at the desired temperature throughout its entire journey so it gets to the customer in perfect shape. While some of the concerns for cold products are the same as anything else, such as the style of packaging, others are unique. To make sure that your product arrives in one piece without any damage, you will want to consider the following things for cold product packaging.
Transportation
Perhaps the most important consideration for cold product packaging is how the item will be transported and the conditions it will be exposed to during this. For example, if your product will be traveling in a refrigerated truck, your packaging will have very different requirements than a cold product that is in a standard truck equipped with air conditioning or not even that. The second product would require significantly more insulation and maybe even ice packs or other items, depending on the distance traveled.
When considering the transportation, think about the type of vehicle that will carry the product, the temperature inside the vehicle, how long the transportation will take, and how many times the product has to be transferred to another vehicle or location. The last of these is important, as each transfer will expose your product to the outside world, requiring packaging that is better able to keep the cold inside.
Durable Materials
As with any other type of packaging, you want to make sure that the materials used to box your cold products are as durable as possible. This goes a step further with cold items, as the container or box must also withstand the cold temperatures that the product requires. If your package will be traveling in a freezer or refrigerated truck, you will want to opt for paperboard that can handle damp cold as opposed to standard paperboard.
Freshness
No matter the type of cold product you have, chances are that it needs to remain cold to preserve its freshness. As such, the ability of the packaging to do just that is crucial. To do this, make sure that the container is sealed completely with something such as plastic or shrink wrap. This will keep food fresh and prevent temperature-sensitive medications from spoiling.
Ability to Track Temperature
Since temperature is a concern for your product, you should make sure that you have some way of tracking the temperature of the item. This may be something built into the product itself, into the individual product packaging, or even into a box that multiple products are stored in. By having a temperature tracking device traveling with the product, you can ensure it always remains at the proper temperature. This also allows you to watch the temperature in real-time and make adjustments if it begins to get too high.
Cold product packaging also requires the same considerations you would have for other items, such as creating an eye-catching style, a product that is easy to open, and something that fits your brand’s image.
