Flexible packaging is used in transport to ensure the safe movement of food around the EU by reducing food waste, emissions, avoiding contamination and enabling reuse of rigid containers.
These flexible liners allow the reuse of rigid bulk containers like IBCs and drums, with less water needed to clean and service the bulk containers. In addition, an optimized packaging-to-product ratio means that an aseptic bag represent only 0.3% or 0.5% of the weight of the product. The aseptic protection provided by the flexible bag permits the preservation for long-period at room temperature of very sensible goods. Therefore, not only does flexible transport packaging enable efficient reuse of drums and other rigid containers, but it also allows to avoid setting up a cold or frozen chain for those products and it protects against cross-contamination.
The alternative to flexible packaging for large quantities of supplied tomatoes, fruits and others is a cold or frozen chain with much higher environmental impacts in logistics and storage as well as lower nutritional values and shorter shelf life. In addition, without such flexible packaging, spoilage via oxidation, contamination or exposure to heat or light is inevitable and would bring to substantial food waste.
https://www.theparliamentmagazine.eu/news/article/flexible-packaging-enabling-reuse-and-reducing-emissions-for-transport-packaging