News from CRIS: Food, Medicine & Cosmetic Packaging - Overview

June 15, 2021

What is packaging?

Packaging is the material found around many foods, medicine, and cosmetic products. Many materials are used to create packaging including plastic, metal, glass, paper, and more.  
 
There are many different types of packaging depending on the goal. For example, packaging designed for transporting large quantities of medication will be different than the packaging designed to portion out individual doses of medication.  
 
For the purposes of this series, we will focus on packaging that has direct contact with the foods, medications, and cosmetics we use and consume.  
 

What is the purpose of packaging? 

There are three core purposes of packaging materials: 

1. Protect products from contamination or damage. 
2. Contain and portion products.
3. Communicate what’s in the packaging to the consumer.

...

To continue reading the entire blog post, visit: https://www.canr.msu.edu/news/food-medicine-cosmetic-packaging-overview.