More than 1,000 exhibiting companies have announced their attendance at IFFA 2019 in Frankfurt am Main. From 4 to 9 May 2019, they will be showcasing product solutions, services and innovations for all process steps in meat processing. The packaging industry is traditionally strongly represented at the trade fair.
The trade fair for the meat industry, which is organised every three years, will this year be a Gross exhibition space of 120,000 square metres occupy. Because the new Hall 12 will also be used, the IFFA This is eight per cent more than the previous time in 2016.
Trade fair visitors interested in packaging technology will head for Hall 11. There you will find Packaging technology for meat and sausage products, poultry and fish. Companies such as Multivac, Sealpac, Tavil, Ulma, Variovac and VC999 are represented. The product area Packaging material with companies such as Flexopack, Krehalon and Schur Flexibles can be found in Hall 11. A search for „packaging“ in the exhibitor catalogue produces a total of 289 hits.
Packaging technology promotes food safety
Packaging is also one of the major topics at IFFA because it is directly linked to issues of Food safety is linked. This was emphasised by Richard Clemens, Managing Director of the VDMA Food Processing and Packaging Machinery Association, in the run-up to IFFA. Packaging technology companies provide solutions to avoid microbiological contamination of foodstuffs through automated processes. As an example, he cited the fully automated Portioning and pickling of fillets, steaks or cold cuts in packaging using inserts or industrial robots.
Foreign bodies in food could in turn be caused by Inspection systems, with Checkweighers are recognised so that the contaminated food is ejected before it reaches the packaging.
Sustainability and recyclability are important
With the exhibiting Packaging company the two main trends of recent months will play a major role: the reduction in the use of packaging materials and the increased production of recyclable packaging. Both topics are linked to the EU plastics strategy and the German Packaging Act, which came into force at the beginning of the year.
In Frankfurt, therefore, numerous solutions for Production of lightweight packaging to be seen. Lightweight packaging can now offer even better packaging performance than conventional solutions. At the same time, they are made from sustainable film materials and processed using modern processing technologies to save material.
The organiser, Messe Frankfurt, refers to other packaging trends that will be shown at IFFA: Skin packaging with cardboard product carriers, Protective gas packaging for meat and sausage products with a longer shelf life and „Smart“ packaging, which provide information about the quality status or the degree of freshness of the food contained.
[infotext icon]„Packaging Day“ at the IFFA Forum
The programme of lectures at the IFFA Forum in Hall 11. Each day, the programme offers discussion contributions on a top topic. On Wednesday, 8 May, the focus will be on the latest trends in food packaging. For the first time, Messe Frankfurt will be offering guided tours of the trade fair on the forum topics, the „IFFA Discovery Tours“[/infotext].
