While conventional casing packaging provides convenience in daily life, it also generates packaging waste. This not only increases the environmental burden but also raises the possibility of resource wastage. With the rapid development of food technology and the packaging industry, numerous new packaging materials and forms continue to emerge. Among these, experts believe that edible and eco-friendly packaging materials will lead the sustainable development of the food packaging industry.

In recent years, sustainable packaging and green packaging have become hot topics within China's food packaging sector. Driven by a combination of factors including retailer requirements, public awareness, economic pressures (particularly from petroleum-based products), and government policies, sustainability has permeated all aspects of food packaging. The sustainable food packaging industry is developing comprehensively towards efficient products, efficient packaging, efficient transport logistics, and efficient solutions.

"Green" Packaging Boxes Made from Sucrose
Recently, CristalUnion, a leading French company in edible sugars, announced it will launch a candy box made from sucrose, custom-made for its "Daddy" brand. The first batch of this new product, aiming to produce 2 million units, is slated for release in early 2014.

"The difference between these two types of boxes lies solely in the method of producing the plastic: the former is derived from sugarcane, the latter from petroleum." To prevent imitation by competitors, Mr. Alain Comissel, CEO of CristalUnion, did not disclose the detailed extraction process. However, it is confirmed that the sugar inside the box remains unchanged, still sourced from sugar beets produced in the plains of northern and eastern France.

The plant-derived candy box is indistinguishable in appearance from traditional chemical-based packaging but costs twice as much. However, the new packaging is recyclable and highly beneficial for the environment; its "eco-friendly appeal" is also expected to attract a large number of consumers. Unfortunately, this sugar-based packaging is neither water-soluble nor edible.

Edible Packaging Materials Enter the Market
As the low-carbon environmental protection concept becomes a societal priority, many fields are putting it into practice, including the packaging materials sector. With the rapid development of the food processing industry, the demand for packaging is increasingly growing. It is understood that there are various types of green packaging materials available, broadly categorized into reusable and recyclable packaging materials, edible packaging materials, degradable materials, and paper-based materials.

• Reusable packaging materials, primarily glass bottles for beer, beverages, etc., can be used multiple times.

• Recyclable packaging materials, mainly plastic packaging, can be processed physically into recycled packaging containers or chemically into recycled packaging products. However, a shortcoming of these two methods is that they only reduce environmental pollution, ultimately still facing the issue of waste disposal.

• Degradable material packaging can degrade and revert naturally after use, causing no environmental pollution.

• Paper packaging made from natural plant fibers has high recycling value and utilizes well-established technology.

Edible packaging materials use natural edible substances (such as polysaccharides, proteins, etc.) as raw materials, forming edible films through interactions between different molecules. Depending on the materials and processes used, they can be classified into polysaccharide-based edible films, protein-based edible films, composite edible films, etc.

The successful development of the green sucrose-based box in France indicates that such packaging is entering the market and holds significant potential for greater utilization and future development prospects.