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Braskem joins producers for developing fruit export packaging

Partnership between Brazilian companies will guarantee more quality and protection to Brazilian papayas

January, 31, 2018 - To strengthen its foreign sales and increase its profitability, the great challenge of Brazilian fruit growers is to guarantee the protection and conservation of its products until they reach consumers' hands. Braskem developed, in partnership with customers, a new plastic solution exclusively for the Brazilian papaya market.

The petrochemical company worked with the Union of Growers of Brazilian Papaya (UGBP), a producer company in Linhares (ES) - a region known as the national capital of papaya exports. Together, the companies developed a safer and more attractive packaging, and the big challenge was to find a suitable film that did not harm the fruit. "We wanted to offer a quality gain to consumers and to establish our brand. Thus, we were able to develop a package that meets all the requirements", says Rodrigo Martins, director of UGBP.

Now, papaya exports are involved in a polyethylene film that gives the quality, safety and aesthetics that local farmers wanted. According to Martins, the use of plastic can reduce some of the most common losses to fruits in the market. After several tests, it was detected that the packaging enabled a more uniform fruit maturation, ensuring protection against contamination and increasing the exposure time in stands up to four days.

The new packaging is already available in Brazil and in the United States - one of the main consumers of Brazilian papaya in the world - in individual and box versions. "The partnership with the UGBP producers was very productive and successful. Our biggest challenge was to align the technology of our resin with the demands of farmers, but always aiming to meet consumers' desires in such different markets in Brazil and abroad. It was another successful test for Braskem's portfolio in the packaging industry", says Albertoni Bloisi, responsible for the Market Development area at Braskem.

With an average production of 600 tons of papaya per month, UGBP exports to France, Germany, Italy, Holland, Portugal, Poland, Spain, England, Canada and the United States. In the national market, the organization sells to the South, Southeast and Midwest regions.

Source: Braskem