Natural Packaging and Stand Up Pouches--Part One

There isn't a week that goes by that we aren't asked for a stand up pouch that is "earth friendly" or "natural looking." Doesn't the picture of the paper bag "look" natural and earth friendly?  I assure you, it won't protect whatever goes inside from anything other than maybe dust, certainly not much else.  Some clients will demand a stand up pouch that is biodegradeable, thinking that they are readily available.  As I've mentioned in other posts, we are very concerned with helping our environment and want nothing more than to use earth friendly materials to protect products, but as of right now there still are not alternatives that would work for what our clients need.  Let me explain:

Stand up pouches, also known as stand bags or stand up bags, are made from multiple layers of barrier film laminated together.  This lamination of different highly engineered film structures is what gives a stand bag strength to stand effectively but more importantly it creates the barrier properties that keep the contents fresher for longer.

Often people (consumers, buyers, engineers, etc) will hear of a directive from WalMart or some other Fortune 50 company that they've told all of their suppliers to use biodegradeable plastic "from now on."  What we don't hear is what Paul Harvey used to say, "The Rest Of The Story."  For some types of packaging, there are corn based or non-petroleum based materials that have shown promise but for stand bags, there aren't yet.

Non-petroleum based materials do not have the barrier properties or strength as other film structures.  Remember, it is the different layers of film working together that make the stand bag special and unique.  Plastic bags that we are used to using on a daily basis like trash bags or grocery bags are made with one layer of film.  No matter how thick that layer of film is the bag won't have the strength to stand on its own.  Further, without having barrier properties to count on either, not only will the bag be weak but it won't protect the contents inside for any length of time.  There is more to this, stop back soon for Part Two.  Interested in using stand up bags for your particular product?