Why more food manufacturers are going generic with their packaging

In food manufacturing, change is the only constant.

Hot, dry weather changes the growing season for local strawberries, and suddenly you’re sourcing from overseas. Russia’s attack on Ukraine has caused a global shortage of sunflower oil. Monsoon seasons in Vietnam have led to a shortage of black pepper.

Each shift in supply can trigger a ripple effect on your packaging line.

Under Australia’s Country of Origin Labelling (CoOL) rules, even a small change in ingredient sourcing can alter the percentage of Australian content shown on pack.

That means every new shipment of ingredients could make your pre-printed packaging out of date and non-compliant.

It’s no wonder so many manufacturers are re-thinking how they label their products.

More are moving to generic packaging with on-demand printing; it’s a flexible, compliant and far more sustainable way to keep pace with constant change.

What is generic packaging?

Generic packaging is plain packaging, such as film or cartons, that you can print your own nutritional information, date codes and product details onto, in real time, to suit the specific product.

Rather than using pre-printed cartons or shippers for every variant, you use a plain base and print the product information on demand using direct coding (for example, Thermal Transfer Overprinter or inkjet) or a label printer applicator (LPA).

Common types of generic packaging include:

• Film and wrapping – such as confectionery, snack or nut packaging
• Secondary packaging – such as boxes and cartons for shipping or multi-packs

By moving to generic packaging, manufacturers can quickly adapt to changes in recipes, ingredients, regulations or production schedules without redesigning or scrapping stock.

The hidden waste behind pre-printed packaging

The benefits of generic packaging go beyond regulations. Traditional pre-printed film and cartons can waste surprising amounts of stock.

In one large frozen food plant, each product variant had its own pre-printed film. With every line changeover, operators lost 30–50 metres of film while aligning registration marks. Across a dozen lines, that added up to tens of thousands of dollars and kilograms of plastic wasted every month.

Switching to plain film and printing all variable data in-line solved the problem. The plant cut setup times, significantly reduced waste, and saved costs.

Turn warehouse space into production space

Another manufacturer used to order around 5,000 pre-printed cartons per SKU, filling a warehouse with packaging stock.

However, after standardising a small range of generic box sizes and printing all branding, barcodes, and origin information in-line, they freed up the warehouse and turned it into a manufacturing area. They added new lines without needing to build a new facility.

Technologies for generic packaging

Different packaging types call for different printing and coding technologies. Here’s how manufacturers are making it happen:

• Print to flow wrap — Thermal Transfer Overprinter (TTO)
  Print messages such as ingredient lists, nutritional panels, logos and marketing information directly onto generic flow wrap or flexible packaging. TTOs use a high-resolution thermal printhead to produce crisp, clear barcodes and text that meet retail and export standards.
• Print to carton — High Resolution Printer
  Print product messages and codes directly onto cartons using next-generation high-resolution inkjet technology. These systems are ideal for printing on generic cartons and corrugated boxes, producing sharp, scannable barcodes and clean graphics across a wide range of packaging environments.
• Label to carton — Label Printer Applicator (LPA)
  When direct printing isn’t practical, LPAs automatically print and apply unique carton labels on demand as products move down the production line. This allows each carton to carry accurate, batch-specific information, without slowing throughput.
• Package Code Management — Matthews iDSnet
  Behind it all, a package code management software such as Matthews iDSnet links every printer on the line. It simplifies message design, product changeovers and compliance by pulling the correct data, including ingredient percentages, allergen lists and country-of-origin details, directly from your database and pushing it to the right coder in real time. That means fewer manual inputs, fewer errors, and full traceability across your packaging workflow.