Consuming a product in inadequate conditions may no longer be a concern. This is due a technology that will enable communication between the packaging and the consumer, "interactive packaging", is being developed by Braskem, the largest thermoplastic resins producers in the Americas, in partnership with the North-American University of Clemson and Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul (UFRGS).

Interactive packaging uses specific indicators to illustrate the conservation status of the content within the package and shows the warning externally. As a result, the packaging color will change and show to the consumer that the product is improper for consume. This Technology may be used in perishable products from several industries.

Researches carried out on poultry, meat and fish, for instance, show that changes in the product pH are fundamental to change the packaging color. According to Patrick Teyssonneyre, Global Innovation and Technology Director at Braskem, the entire value chain of a product can benefit from technology. "This will make the consumer safer about the product quality that it takes home and, on the other hand, companies will control the integrity of their products after manufacturing them, be it during transport or in the point of sales", he adds.

Braskem began its researches on interactive packaging in 2013, completed the proof of concept in 2015 and produced the first prototypes in 2016. It is currently available to advance the study progress with sectors interested in the product. "The interactive packaging development for a specific segment needs to be customized, so the interactive packaging arrival on the shelves should take a few more years," Teyssonneyre explains.

How does the interactive packaging work? 

• Chemicals with reactive properties to the specific indicators that warns about harms to the product are added with the thermoplastic resin used to produce the packaging.
• When the product suffers any type of damage to its entirety, the packaging changes its color and signals to the consumer.

About Braskem
With a global, human-oriented vision of the future, Braskem's 8,000 collaborators strive to improve people's lives by creating sustainable chemicals and plastic solutions. It is the largest resin producer in the Americas, with an annual production of 20 million tonnes, including basic chemicals and petrochemicals, and a revenue of R$ 55 billion in 2016. It exports to customers in approximately 100 countries and operates 41 industrial units located in Brazil, USA, Germany and Mexico, the latter in partnership with Mexican Company Idesa.