HYBRID PACKAGING MATERIALS


BARRIERBALANCING ACT THE As confectionery packaging moves towards simpler, recyclable structures,


developers are having to solve a more complex equation: how to cut material without compromising the barriers, seals and shelf life products depend on.


F


or confectionery packaging, the challenge isn’t keeping a product inside its wrapper. The packaging must also keep the


outside world out – protecting chocolate from oxygen and grease, gummies from unwanted moisture, and filled sweets from the migration and oxidation of fats and oils. As sustainability pressures intensify, however, packaging developers are being asked to achieve all of this with fewer materials and structures that are easier to recycle. That tension is pushing barrier


technology into increasingly sophisticated territory. “Confectionery products place very different demands on packaging, and barrier technologies continue to evolve to address those specific needs,” says Anna Olshanskaya, Director for Industrial Starches, Paper & Packaging at Cargill. Oxygen is particularly important for


products containing fats, cocoa, nuts or sensitive flavour compounds, where exposure


can contribute to flavour


degradation, colour changes and a decline in overall product quality. Conventional high-barrier structures have therefore typically


combined polymer Grease protection is equally important,


particularly for chocolate, filled products and other confectionery containing lipid-rich ingredients. Here, the barrier needs to prevent fat migration through the packaging structure without compromising its ability to run efficiently on high-speed packaging equipment. One of the more interesting


developments is the emergence of bio- based barrier systems. Hydrocolloids such


as pectin and carrageenan are attracting interest for their potential to contribute oxygen barrier functionality, while starch- derived technologies are being explored for oil and grease resistance. Cargill is working in this space with


starch-based barrier coatings that use film-forming properties combined with tailored hydrophobic modifications to provide oil and grease resistance. For Anna, however, the significance of these technologies lies not simply in replacing one material with another, but in changing how packaging structures are designed. “The biggest challenge is achieving the


THE BIGGEST CHALLENGE IS ACHIEVING THE SAME LEVEL OF BARRIER PERFORMANCE WITH SIMPLER PACKAGING STRUCTURES


— ANNA OLSHANSKAYA, CARGILL


layers,


including EVOH and metallised films, alongside ultra-thin functional coatings.


32 • KENNEDY’S CONFECTION • JULY 2026


same level of barrier performance with simpler packaging structures,” she says. Historical ly,


high-performance


confectionery packaging has often depended on multiple layers, each performing a specific job – oxygen protection, moisture control, grease resistance or sealing. The industry’s move towards recyclable packaging is now putting pressure on those structures to become less complex, with mono-material formats increasingly favoured. That is easier said than done. A bio-


based material may deliver an impressive barrier


in laboratory conditions, but packaging has to survive the considerably


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