Two important trends in bakery packaging are being driven by consumer demand, says Robert Tindal, marketing director at Manchester-based Reynards. “The most common enquiries at last month’s Food & Bake were for environmentally-friendly (EF) packs and those which promote the baker’s own brand image,” he says.

Consumer demand for EF packaging is growing in the UK. “We’re bringing in a lot of our products from abroad,” says Mr Tindal, “from North America, Spain, Germany, Denmark and Holland. And as people here want more, the unit price of these packs decreases. That, together with the sharp rise in oil prices which drives up the price of oil-based plastics, means that EF packs are only going to gain in popularity,” he adds.

Reynards’ products include sandwich wedges and cups made using the firm’s unbleached kraftboard.