In the savoury foods sector there are usually sensitive but essential ingredients upon which the flavour and food value depend. Dry cheese products such as powdered Parmesan, require strictly controlled but low humidity content for long life coupled with good flavour. Meat, fish and poultry stock cubes, often high in moisture-loving salt, receive full (and deadfold) protection from a non-laminated alufoil wrapper.
Dehydrated and Dry Foods
Drying as a technique for food preservation has a long history. It remains a very efficient and widely used way to greatly extend the life of foodstuffs. Once safely protected from light and gases, the food retains its nutritional value and texture until re-hydrated.
Removing the water eliminates any support for bacteria and other contamination. It also removes a high proportion of the product weight and space requirements, saving valuable resources used in storage and transport.
Aluminium foil can provide the essential barrier needed to stop the ingress of moisture and escape of subtle flavours. It also prevents the UV rays, present in most forms of lighting, from causing ‘photo-oxidation’ and the rancid taste from fat and oil components in dried food products.
Alufoil, mainly in the form of sachets, is widely used to pack such food items as peas, beans, milk and soup powders, cake mixes, sweet and savoury sauces, herbs and spices, yeast, instant beverages such as chocolate and malt-based drinks, tea and coffee. Single serve sachets ensure that the rest of the contents remain in top condition.
The sachet or pouch for dried products can be made in a variety of sizes and shapes, from the smallest ‘stickpack’ of instant coffee to very large multi-portion packs used by the catering industry for such products as soup and cake mixes.