Bernucci is doing a lot of innovating for an 80-year-old company.
Founded in 1946 and based in Milan, Italy, Bernucci is a food packaging specialist. Besides three different paper packaging solutions for skin and nutrition information panel applications – all of which are Forest Stewardship Council-certified and 100 percent recyclable – it now offers Paper2Skin, which is composed of fully printable cardboard laminated with a customizable thin-skin plastic web.
“It is something completely new on the market,” Bernucci Director Alberto Bernucci told SeafoodSource at the 2024 Seafood Expo Asia in Singapore. “This is the main reason we decided to exhibit in this show.”
The packaging offers the ability to showcase irregularly-shaped fish cuts for better merchandising, with the additional benefit of being fully printable on both sides, Bernucci said. Salmon and tuna are the most popular items Paper2Skin is being used for, he said.
“The top is a very thin plastic film. Customers can decide to have all the surface covered by paper or a laser cut, and we can do all the shapes the customer wants easily,” he said.
Paper2Skin, which was featured in the expo’s Product Showcase, also can extend food shelf-life, and the package can be opened by hand, rather than requiring a scissors or knife, according to Bernucci.
“It’s very efficient and a nice presentation on the table. Just peel off the top and put it on the table and it looks great,” Bernucci said.
Even for packaging that offers single portions, which are exploding in popularity, it cuts down on waste, as there’s not triple packaging with plastic and gold or silver paperboard – as is common with most sliced salmon, according to Bernucci.
“And with a simple gesture you can remove the paper from the film, ensuring efficient recycling,” he said. “All over the world, consumers are looking more and more sustainable and recyclable packaging. And this is one of the most recyclable packagings that you can find in the world. It's 100 percent recyclable as paper.”
Bernucci said he thinks the Paper2Skin would be perfect for ready-to-eat seafood products like saku – a Japanese term for a block of skinless, boneless fish ready to be used in sashimi or sushi.
“People are making their own rice and rolls more since Covid. With this, they can just take the fish right out, they don’t need to cut it, and they can have the best sushi at home,” he said.
Bernucci also offers trays of difference sizes, including microwavable trays, and skinpack applications including low-plastic skinpack primarily using paper.
