Development and production of a plant-based foam packaging material for Seafood Industry

The British Columbia aquaculture industry sends 3-4,000,000 Expanded Polystyrene (EPS Styrofoam) fish boxes to market annually. Globally, wild and farmed combined, circulate tens of millions annually. Food industry including Sea-food packaging is one of the largest producers of package waste in landfills, and this has driven the need for a recyclable/biodegradable packaging as a replacement for petrochemical-based polymers to reduce the damage to the environment.
As regulations banning single-use plastics and specifically EPS by counties, cities, states, provinces, and countries rise, the fresh fish industry will be left with no alternative option to transport the large quantities of the head of gutted fish (HOG). EPS is currently the only viable material packaging option to fulfill the needs of the entire fresh fish cold supply chain and finding a sustainable packaging solution is inevitable before the regulation is universal.
With a progressive incremental innovation plan, this project will introduce a new recyclable and biodegradable packaging substitute to replace EPS fish packaging. Environmental reciprocity and looming regulation will highlight the innovative opportunity to address this challenge that will persist beyond fresh fish packaging.

Faculty Supervisor:

Hossein Kazemian

Student:

Partner:

Brown's Bay Packing Ltd.

Discipline:

Engineering

Sector:

Manufacturing; Wholesale trade

University:

University of Northern British Columbia

Program: