Packaging today plays an important role in the quality of food products by providing protection from environmental, chemical, and physical challenges. Food packaging is essential and pervasive: essential because without packaging the safety and quality of food would be compromised, and pervasive because almost all food is packaged in some way. Food packaging performs a number of disparate tasks: it protects the food from contamination and spoilage; it makes it easier to transport and store foods; and it provides uniform measurement of contents. By allowing brands to be created and standardized, it makes advertising meaningful and large-scale distribution and mass merchandising possible. Food packages with dispensing caps, sprays, reclosable openings, and other features make products more usable and convenient. This principal function of packaging involves retardation of deterioration, extension of shelf-life, and maintenance of quality and safety of packaged food. Consumer awareness of food safety and nutrition is a major issue in relation to healthy lifestyles and disease prevention. Improper consumer food management has been implicated in a large number of cases of foodborne illnesses. The right selection of packaging materials and technologies maintains product quality and freshness during distribution and storage.

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