Packaging Layers
Food deliveries will usually come with three layers of packaging. Firstly, the boxes, trays or bags to contain each item of the order, which are usually made from card, paper, aluminium or polystyrene. Following this, a bag to contain these elements and then the insulated delivery bag, which may contain more than one order.
First layer
Unsurprisingly, the first layer has the largest impact on retaining the quality of food when it reaches its destination. Important things to remember are
- Ventilation is essential to ensure that food doesn't go soggy and lose its crunch - especially with fries!
- Too much ventilation however can lead to the product cooling too quickly, that's why our specially designed boxes feature well positioned ventilation holes.
- Never overload the package, this also increases the chance of food becoming moist.
- Napkins don't aid in moisture reduction and in some cases can even block ventilation, so pack them separately from food.
Using our Aviko Delivery Concept boxes as a point of reference, our Science & Research Centre ran tests to show the effectiveness of different packaging in delivery conditions. You can see that paper bags are second best at keeping food condition high, and unventilated boxes of any material produce considerably worse results.
If you currently use unventilated boxes, we recommend changing packaging or at the very least puncturing the packaging prior to delivery to let your food breath.
Second and third layer
The second layer of packaging which keeps an order together is less important in retaining quality, however our experiments showed that using a paper bag rather than plastic helped the product ventilate and stay fresh. It's also again important not to overpack the bags.
The third layer will often be out of the control of the foodservice business, it may be a Deliveroo bag for example. However, our studies also show that it has little effect on the condition of the final product.
Sustainability
Providing customers with easily recyclable or disposable packaging which uses sustainable materials is important from a branding perspective and also to help do your bit to protect the planet. Whilst customers will obviously not order food because it arrives in a nice box, they may be less inclined to choose you again if they feel the packaging is bad for the environment.
Instagramability
Finally, never forget the power of social media! Choosing packaging that looks good on camera and fits with your brand will make customers more likely to share images of their order online, giving you free advertising. Aim for card and paper over plastics and metal and choose recycled materials that look as natural as possible, browns and white usually look best, and also consider investing in some stickers to get your branding in front of potential new customers.
Claim your free delivery booster kit
We're giving away 100 delivery booster kits, containing stickers, chip boxes and more that will give your business an added personal touch with your customers. It's first come first served, so make sure you don't miss out.
