Printing for Frozen Food Packaging: Ensuring Durability, Legibility, and Compliance

Printing for frozen food packaging requires precise handling and must comply with stringent regulatory standards to ensure safety and product integrity. Careless printing methods and handling will not only decrease the readability of product information but may also affect consumer safety. This is why choosing the right printing technology for frozen food packaging is crucial not only for maintaining visual clarity but also for ensuring product traceability and compliance with industry standards.

Given this issue, manufacturers should consider applying specialized materials and techniques to ensure products’ durability, legibility, and most importantly—stay in compliance with food industry standards.

So, what is the most suitable technology to meet all the demands? What considerations should manufacturers take while choosing the right system? When assessing printing systems, manufacturers must consider factors such as ink performance in sub-zero temperatures, system maintenance in cold environments, and integration with automated production lines.

Why Printing on Frozen Food Packaging is Challenging

Printing for frozen food packaging combines several critical elements, like material and environment, that make it a challenging process. Let’s explore the complete reason behind this matter.

Moisture, Frost, and Surface Adhesion Issues

Frozen food packaging is often stored in extremely cold conditions, causing it to be easily exposed to condensation, moisture, and ice. On top of that, the packaging materials mostly have slick surfaces.

These factors can prevent ink solvents from properly bonding and absorbing onto the packaging surface, especially if it hasn’t been treated appropriately. To solve this, many manufacturers apply corona or plasma surface treatments to increase surface energy, improving ink adhesion even in low-humidity conditions.

Packaging Types: Film, Pouches, and Trays

Frozen food packaging comes in various materials such as films, pouches, and trays each presenting different printing and adhesion challenges. All of these materials have specific properties and structures that determine how well they will adapt to the harsh environments and the entire printing process.

Regulatory Requirements for Food Labeling

Food industry has strict regulations supervising food safety and labelling accuracy. Food packaging, particularly frozen food must consist of compulsory information, such as expiration dates, ingredients, and so on. In addition, compliance with regulations such as FDA or EU labeling requirements is mandatory for international distributors, making coding accuracy a key compliance factor.

Unclear or incorrect print quality can lead to costly product recalls, regulatory warnings, and potential brand reputation damage.

Technologies Used for Printing on Frozen Packaging

Several advanced technologies have been invented to handle the unique challenge of printing for frozen food packaging. Each of these following technologies has its own strength and can withstand cold environments and moist conditions.

Continuous Inkjet (CIJ) for Flexible Films

Continuous inkjet printers (CIJ) equipped with non-contact technology and commonly used in the packaging industry with various kinds of materials, like flexible films. These printers deliver high-speed, non-contact coding that prevents ink smearing even on moist or frozen surfaces, making them ideal for high-output environments.

This material is widely used in the frozen food industry and CIJ is the most suitable solution employed by most of the manufacturers in the industry. 

CIJ systems are designed to withstand freezing temperatures and can operate smoothly without slowing down on fast-moving production lines.

Thermal Transfer Printing for Labels

Thermal transfer printing technology offers high-resolution, variable data printing that ensures clarity and permanence on frozen food labels. They also have a great resistance to cold conditions and condensation, so it is very reliable, especially when paired with specialised inks.

Specialised Inks for Cold Surfaces

One of common challenges manufacturers encounter while printing on frozen food packaging is that the inks often fail to bond effectively onto the surfaces. 

Based on this, it’s crucial for you to choose special formulated inks that can perform well under freezing environments.

Some common types of these specialised inks include: 

These ink types are specifically designed to remain stable under fluctuating cold-chain temperatures and resist smudging during transport.

• Alcohol-based inks
• MEK-based inks
• UV curable inks

Key Considerations When Choosing a Printing System

Don’t let the wrong printing system disrupt your printing process. Choose only the best system that can help you produce durable and legible printings with the following key consideration.

Substrate Compatibility and Ink Adhesion

Make sure the system is compatible with substrate characteristics and ink adhesion. If the two elements are compatible with each other, it will deliver strong adhesion, even under a moist environment and freezer conditions.

Resistance to Freezing, Smearing, and Condensation

Printing for frozen food packaging is not only about applying information but also ensuring that printed data remains intact under freezing, humid, and abrasive conditions.

So, remember to select a system that is reliable and can resist freezing and condensation. Pairing your printer with inks engineered for cold resistance can further enhance performance and reduce reprint rates.

It’s also essential to choose fast drying inks and a non-contact printing system to prevent smearing and chemical contamination to the foods.

Read About: Essential Guide to Coding and Marking in the Chemical Industry

Speed and Integration with Packaging Line

Frozen food packaging often operates at high-speed lines, so the printing system must be qualified to apply accurate prints without slowing down the operation runs.

Benefits of the Right Printing Solution for Frozen Foods

Choosing the right printing system for frozen food packaging offers wide-ranging benefits from maintaining product quality and traceability to safeguarding brand integrity and compliance.

Clear and Legible Date Codes and Barcodes

The right printing solution can make sure critical information, like date codes and barcodes stay clear and legible. 

This has become an important benefit that many manufacturers seek while printing for frozen food packaging, specifically to ensure safety and reduce the risk of product recalls.

Long-Term Durability in Cold Chain Distribution

Aside from delivering clear and legible date codes, a good printing system ensures the ink’s formulation can resist freezing and smearing, especially during the logistics process and while the products’ stored in cold storages.

Reduced Rework and Compliance Risks

A well-integrated system can keep up with the production line, ensuring the entire operation runs smoothly with minimal downtime. It means it will reduce the cause of misprint and rework, saving your time and saving your business for compliance risks.

Common Mistakes in Frozen Packaging Printing and How to Avoid Them

Using standard inks, neglecting durability tests, and overlooking packaging differences are frequent mistakes that compromise frozen packaging quality and compliance. So, how to avoid them? Let’s explore!

Using Standard Ink on Cold Surfaces

Many manufacturers think that standard inks have the capability to withstand harsh and cold temperatures, in fact they tend to disrupt the adhesion process. As a result, inks will smudge and be unable to stick onto the surfaces.

It’s way better to use specialised inks while printing for frozen food packaging that are proven to be freezing-resistant and moisture-resistant.

Skipping Adhesion or Durability Testing

Durability testing guarantees that your print will produce a clear and durable result. When you skip the process, you cannot ensure if the printed codes remain intact and will not smear or fade during transport.

Always test your printing system before the operation begins and use standardized equipment to evaluate its compatibility.

Ignoring Packaging Type Differences

Some manufacturers often ignore the difference between packaging types that in the end cause smudging to mechanical failure. So, always match your inks and printer with the packaging materials to maintain compatibility.

Best Practices for Printing on Frozen Food Packaging

Want to leverage your printing for frozen food packaging to be more effective and impactful? Some practical tips below will help you achieve the target! Implementing preventive maintenance and material testing before mass production can help minimize downtime and increase code consistency.

Pre-Conditioning Packaging Before Coding

Keep your packaging materials 1-2 hours in the production environment before the production begins to ensure a stable surface.

Routine Maintenance of Printers in Cold Environments

Perform regular maintenance by following recommended service schedules to keep the equipment clean and extend their lifespan.

Partnering with the Right Printing Solution Provider

While having advanced printing technology is essential, partnering with a reliable solution provider adds strategic value to your frozen food packaging operations. A well-experienced partner like Markcom Global will help you get the best printing technology while ensuring that the system is compatible with your business’ needs.

Why Markcom is the Right Partner for Your Frozen Food Coding Needs

Printing for frozen food packaging demands accuracy and must be approached with special technology and methods. With the help of Markcom Global, now you can get the most advanced, yet the smartest solution to produce legible and durable codes on your frozen packaging.

Let’s find out the right technology that suits your business’s needs! Contact us for a free strategy session!

References:

https://www.domino-printing.com/en-us/industries/food/bag/printing-on-bag

https://www.herma.com/label/solutions/foods-and-beverages/deep-freeze-labels-food-trading-sector 

https://www.greencitytimes.com/sustainable-frozen-food-packaging/