Socio-economic requirements as a fundament of innovation in food packaging.

• Author: Cholewa-Wojcik, Agnieszka
• Position: Report

INTRODUCTION

Innovation is an important element for both the development and the competitive advantage of packaging systems, especially for those utilized in the food supply chain. Innovations are conditioned by many factors of a very diverse nature that stimulate or limit them. Innovations depend to a large extent on the quantitative and qualitative transformations taking place in consumer behavior - the largest and most important group of clients in the trade. Those innovations are determined by many factors. By reviewing the current specialized techno-scientific literature, and analyzing the international industrial association elaborations, those factors can be grouped into the following main categories: business dynamics, distribution, regulation and consumption (The Future... 2013). In particular, the business dynamics factors influence the packaging industry and, in turn, lead to increasing the requirements for brand enhancement/differentiation, in a progressively more competitive context that also includes the development of new innovative packaging materials. In the field of product distribution, and so among the related factors, important roles are played by: the consolidation and globalization rates of the retailers involved; the technological quality and innovation of the supply chains; and e-commerce. Moreover, very important drivers for industrial development are the current legal regulations that concern:

* the protection of consumer interests in terms of safety, protection of consumer economic interests; and

* the adoption of new regulatory requirements related to the recycling of packages, as well as the reduction in carbon footprint associated with their life cycles and, as a result, the impact on global climate change (Position Paper - Market Trends and Developments, 2008). In this regard, it should be observed that a huge number of researchers have assessed the environmental issues related to the food packaging field such as, just to name a few, Ingrao et al. (2015 a,b), Siracusa et al. (2014), and Gironi and Piemonte (2010). Those authors investigated different food packaging products (i.e. films, trays, bottles and clamshells) to assess the potential environmental improvements resulting from innovative solutions like the reduction of the input virgin polymer utilized, as well as the usage of recycled and/or natural polymers.

Results from the analysis of the aforementioned factors contributed to formulating the statement that nowadays packaging is supposed to perform well according to the following three dimensions: profit (economy aspect); planet (environmental aspect); and people (social aspects) (Yam, 2009). Social aspects should also be accounted for in the planning of marketing strategies for product and packaging.

However, it should be underscored that the socio-economic needs and expectations of consumers are acknowledged as mostly stimulating industrial development. In this context, the major consumption trends are depicted in Figure 1.

Social trends have a significant impact on the consumer goods market, and thus on the goods offered in it. Among the directions significantly affecting the changes taking place in the packaging market, we should mention first of all the following (Emblem & Emblem, 2011):

* the aging of society;

* the change in the structure of households;

* the changes in lifestyle;

* the increase in the requirements for the convenience of use of products;

* the rising health awareness.

The aging of society is a phenomenon that has been much more intense in recent decades. Especially in more developed countries, the dynamics of its growth accompanied by a drop in the birth rate has caused the percentage of older people in society to grow rapidly. Thus, the aging process has not only a demographic dimension but also an economic and social dimension.

Population aging is an occurrence which during the past several decades has expressively expanded. It has been easy to see the growing proportion of old people in society. It results from the greater longevity of people, the progress of civilization and a higher quality of life. More factors, such as a family model being promoted, the level of wealth of society, the level of social health care, the number of women who are active in the labour market, the educational level of the population and a social policy adopted by a state, exert a direct impact on the phenomenon of population ageing, (Irvine, 2008).

In Poland, the process of society aging has been seen since the 1990s. In 1990, people aged 60 and over accounted for 12.8% of the whole population, whilst in 2013 it was 21.5%. It is projected that this share of people 60 years and older will be 29% in 2030 and 40.4% in 2050 (according to information given by GUS--the Central Statistical Office of Poland in 2016). At the same time, it is predicted that the population will grow by 5.4 million by 2050. A significant increase in the number of older people is already signaled in the first years of the forecast because the population of older people will be fed by very large numbers of births from the 50s and 60s of the last century. The course of changes in the number of subpopulations at the age of 60 years and more coincides with the occurrence of highs and births in the second half of the last century (Raport na temat wptywu..., 2016).

An expression of this are changes in the consumption structure and an increased demand for products (including packaging) adapted to the needs of older consumers. Therefore, this situation forces the producers of products and their packaging to adapt activities to the changing environmental conditions. Especially important solutions are easy opening packaging in smaller sizes with an appropriate typeface and font size to ensure the visibility of the text (Emblem & Emblem 2011).

Another change affecting the transformation of the packaging industry is the change in the structure of households. When assigning the attribute of an economic operator to a household, it should be noted that its activity is focused primarily on satisfying individual and common consumption needs. This essential household goal is the basis for decisions related to the selection of products that are able to meet their needs and requirements. The scope and structure of needs met in households is shaped both by external factors (e.g., prices and supply of goods) as well as internal ones resulting from the socio-demographic and economic structure of households and their members. In addition to the above-described factors of an objective nature affecting consumer consumption decisions, also subjective determinants should be added (so-called sociological and psychological factors) (Zalega, 2007).

What is more, the structure of households is changing as there is a systematic decrease in the number of household members. In 2002 the average number of people in the home-based economy was 2.84, while in 2011 this number was 2.82, and in 2014 it declined further to 2.73. The forecast for 2030 predicts a drop to 2.40 people in the household. According to the forecasted results for the population in the years 2014-2050, the structure of people by age will undergo dynamic changes, being a consequence of the demographic "wave." Taking into account the decreasing number of births and the rapid aging of Polish society, this situation will be reflected in the forecast of the structure of households (Prognoza gospodarstw domowych..., 2016).

Another important trend affecting the food market is the so-called "convenience foods." This trend refers to food products that, thanks to the use of appropriate technologies and raw materials in the production, show the desired durability but also allow quick preparation, either by themselves or in combination with other ingredients of ready-to-eat meals. This category includes products such as: ready for processing, pre-prepared for culinary works, ready for thermal processing, heating, consumption and table serving. Hence the popularity of ready soups, meats, frozen foods, salads and, finally, fruit and vegetable cocktails and other beverages. Consumers expect fast and easily prepared products without the need to unpack them (Tarczyriska, 2013). Thus, the role of packaging containing portions of meals adapted to individual needs, in which there is the possibility of heating a meal or self-heating packaging, significantly increases. Another need for the modern consumer is the convenience and functionality of using the packaged product. The improvement of convenience and functionality is possible by designing innovative packaging construction solutions. The convenience of use can be analyzed bi-directionally. On the one hand, it is related to the ergonomics of packaging, taking into account the shape of the packaging that facilitates the grip and use of the product, the method of opening, portioning, closing and dispensing the product. On the other hand, the convenience of use is related to the marketing of convenient packaging, for example for heating in microwave ovens or packaging in which a simple exothermic reaction is followed by heating the product packed in it (Sykut et al. 2013).

An important stimulus for the development of the packaging industry is also a trend associated with a change in lifestyle, which influences the increase in demand for packaging that facilitates the use. This caused, among other things, an increase in the demand for products packed in convenient packaging. In addition, consumers desire packaging with innovative solutions in the field of improvements regarding the method of opening, closing, dispensing and handling the packed product and protection against unwanted opening (Lisinska & Kusnierz, 2011).

In addition to demographic changes, consumer needs resulting from demographic change have a significant impact on innovation development. As a result, the packaging optimization trend is marked. Instead...