The meat industry has used vacuum packaging for many years for both sub-primal and retail
fresh beef packaging. With a shelf life of 30 to 60 days or more under refrigerated conditions,
vacuum-packaged fresh whole muscle beef can be safely sold and consumed longer than with
any other packaging format.
There are many advantages of compact, oxygen-free vacuum packaging compared to other
formats, yet only a small fraction of retail beef is currently vacuum packaged. The reason is
primarily because meats in vacuum packaging have a dark purple appearance due to lack of
oxygen in the package. Consumers prefer meats that are red in appearance.
Curwood, a division of Bemis Company, has overcome this challenge with a breakthrough
material technology that allows beef in a vacuum package to bloom, providing the excellent
shelf life of vacuum packaging with the fresh red color consumers prefer. Marketed as
FreshCase® packaging, this exciting technology has the potential to revolutionize the meat
case. This paper explores the technology and potential market impact of