A HISTORY OF PACKAGING – PART ONE

In very primitive times, packaging as we know it today could be considered rather outlandish.

Food for example was found and then consumed, this being somewhat a catch, prepare, and eat function. Much knowledge was needed to avoid toxins, little known of, other than illness and death being a result.

Nature provided  “containers” like gourds, shells, and leaves. Later small logs were hollowed out, grasses were woven into bowl-like structures and even animal organs such as stomachs became useful.

An advancement was flexibility, mastered by the Chinese in early times by treating sheets of mulberry bark, ostensibly for wrapping food. They, therefore, made a huge contribution basic as it was.

Fast forward to Europe when in 1795, Napoleon offered a prize for the preservation of food ostensibly to feed his ever-advancing army. But It took 10 years before glass jars were finally the answer.

A Swiss chemist was the inventor of cellophane, a major contribution due to transparency and in 1957 bubble wrap has invented a commodity so essential to this day, contributing to the protection of goods.

Interestingly, pop tabs came about in 1959 when can openers were not always on hand, thus a section of metal was designed to pull out a removable section of a can for use.

In 1973, plastic bottles were used for carbonated drinks being lighter and cheaper than glass, though a nightmare now due to the accumulation on the planet.

Packaging today is advancing with new innovations to reduce the impact on the environment, becoming bio-degradable and eco-friendly.

A long road lies ahead to convince nations of the damages done and to reverse this, but yet sustain profitability.  

Matsimela has always had this important consideration at heart & encourages our client base to reduce, reuse and recycle.