3 Essential Pieces of Packaging Equipment Needed for Your Food Preparation Business

When it comes to running a food-related business, it’s important to ensure that nothing goes wrong. This means investing in the right equipment to make sure that food is packaged correctly to avoid breakages and prevent food from perishing.

When consumers are relying on you to package food the right way, using the correct equipment, such as a vacuum sealers, band sealers or shrink wrapping machines is vital. In today’s article, we’ll be going through the three essential pieces of packaging equipment that may be necessary for your food preparation business. Continue reading to find out more!

Vacuum Sealing food for sale

Packaging or sealing products in an airless environment has long been an effective way to protect items or enhance shelf life. The key to this longer shelf-life is removing the oxygen from the pack as exposure to oxygen causes foods to deteriorate. In order to remove the oxygen, you can remove all the air from the bag during the vacuum sealing process, or alternatively fill the bag with nitrogen when sealing.

If you are sealing sturdy products such as meats and cheeses, vacuum sealing works well as the product is robust enough the withstand all the oxygen being removed from the pack. For more delicate foods where vacuum sealing the bag may cause the product to be crushed, nitrogen can be flushed in to replace the oxygen, meaning the product in the bag is protected (as the bag is fuller) plus the likelihood of food spoiling is significantly reduced as the oxygen has been removed. The vacuum sealer pictured above is our VH529 for low-level commercial use and produces a professionally sealed product ready for immediate sale.

Understanding what packing method is best for the food you’re preparing to pack is vital when storing, transporting and presenting food for sale.

Using a Band Sealer and stand up pouches to package food

For products such as curries, soups, meatballs, noodles, rice dishes, dry pasta, and pre-made desserts, stand up pouches sealed with a band sealer is a good option for take-away packaging. A vertical band sealer makes packaging take home food quick and easy. Benefits of stand up pouches sealed with a band sealer are:

  • Professional and hygienic presentation
  • Pouches are easy to fill with freshly cooked meals
  • Quick and mess-free sealing using a band sealer
  • Food can be frozen before or after sales in stand-up pouches
  • Different sized portions are possible due to different sized pouches.
  • Easy to store and transport
  • Can be professionally labelled and branded

Shrink Packaging

The third method discussed today is shrink packaging. Most people are familiar with this form of packaging for fresh food. On a smaller scale, there are the Venus Shrink-a-pack systems which can be used to manually wrap small items such as hampers, food on trays and some small goods. Depending on the daily output required some businesses may need something more automated such as an L-Bar Sealer and shrink tunnel. This type of shrink wrapping machine is a great investment for larger scale operations packing multiple items such as pizza bases, larger fruits and food on trays in greater quantities.

Final Thoughts

There are no shortcuts when it comes to packaging food for consumers. People can become ill after eating food that hasn’t been sealed or packaged correctly as being exposed to certain elements can cause the food to perish.

All methods of food packaging and packing should be thoroughly investigated prior to investing in setting up processes and equipment.

We can provide solutions for the packing of fresh produce, locally manufactured food, repacking of bulk food, either fresh or frozen, and covering a multitude of shapes and weights. Our extensive experience working with fresh food producers in Australia has allowed us to see firsthand best practice packaging of items such as cucumbers, cauliflowers, citrus, onions, cut-fruit & vegetables, plus the bundling of products such as asparagus, bok choy, and celery. We can advise on the right packaging machinery within our extensive range, including L-Bar Sealers and shrink tunnels, net clipping machines, and shrink-a-packs. Venhart, a well-known and established Venus brand, supplies rubber bands around the country offering a broad range of colours, widths and applications.

We at Venus Packaging are here to help, so make sure you contact us today so we can assist you with all of your wholesale and food packaging supplies!