This article explores 10 new smart packaging solutions that combat excessive waste, prevent counterfeiting, sustain product quality, monitor freshness, and extend product shelf life. These firms leverage advanced smart labeling systems for enhanced package traceability, nanocoatings to improve durability, and NFC tags for seamless consumer engagement. Further innovations include smart packaging codes for efficient supply chain management and integrated sensors for real-time package monitoring. Moreover, these technologies optimize the safety and sustainability of packaging processes.
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Key Takeaways
Drawing insights from the Big Data & AI-powered StartUs Insights Discovery Platform that provides data on over 4.7+ million emerging companies globally, we explore the evolving landscape of the smart packaging industry. This sector is marked by key trends and a substantial workforce, shaping its future. The last time we updated this report was 5 days ago. If there’s something missing or off, your tips are welcome! Here are some key insights at a glance:
- Latest Smart Packaging Trends: The importance of combating excessive waste, preventing counterfeiting, and extending product shelf life leads to technological advancements in the packaging industry. This research provides an overview of the top 10 smart packaging trends, including smart labels, packaging sensors, packaging software, 3D printing, and near-field communication (NFC).
- Smart Packaging Industry Statistics: The smart packaging sector encompasses 3.6K+ companies worldwide. Out of these, 390+ new smart packaging companies were founded in the last five years, witnessing 2020 as the average founding year. On average, these companies employ around 147 people. Further, the average funding received by these 390+ new companies per round in the same span is USD 6.3 million.
- 10 New Smart Packaging Solutions to Watch:
- itmatters– Apparel & Footwear Smart Tags
- Vira – Smart Label
- ZeroTag – Smart Labelling System
- ForgeStop – NFC-enabled Smart Label System
- Akuratemp – Temperature-controlled Packaging
- Fruitortal – Nano Coating Technology
- Shieldtag – Hologram Stickers
- Prove Anything – QR Code Tags
- Signet Tags – NFC Tag
- PackBack – Reusable Packaging System
Meet 10 out of 390+ New Smart Packaging Solutions
In this section, we highlight 10 emerging companies in the smart packaging industry. These firms utilize smart tags, smart labeling systems, nanocoating technology, and hologram stickers. Further, they employ advanced technologies to improve product authentication, shelf-life extension, and consumer interaction. Their solutions integrate advanced sensors and innovative materials to improve packaging functionality and sustainability.
Note on Signal Strength
One of the unique metrics we feature for each company is Signal Strength, a proprietary data point generated by our Discovery Platform. It gauges the extent to which a company’s influence has permeated the global ecosystem of startups, scaleups, and emerging companies. This proprietary metric serves as a valuable guidepost for understanding a company’s standing in the broader market landscape.
1. itmatters
- Founding Year: 2021
- Employee Range: 2-10
- Location: France
- Signal Strength: Very Strong
- What they do: itmatters provides smart tags designed for the apparel and footwear industry to enhance product traceability and authentication. It leverages RFID and NFC technology to monitor valuable data throughout the entire lifecycle of the product. This traceability system allows consumers to access product information such as origin and materials, while aiding brands in anti-counterfeiting efforts. The integrated smart tags allow businesses to optimize their international operations through enhanced product visibility and customer engagement.
2. Vira
- Founding Year: 2021
- Employee Range: 2-10
- Location: Iran
- Signal Strength: Medium
- What they do: Vira produces smart labels that monitor and display food health by changing color in response to environmental simulations within the package. This technology combats issues such as inaccurate expiration dates and food wastage. The smart labels enhance the safety and efficiency of food transportation. Further, it offers a smart platform to improve the real-time control and monitoring of food health in the cold transport chain.
3. ZeroTag
- Founding Year: 2-10
- Employee Range: 2022
- Location: Australia
- Signal Strength: Medium
- What they do: ZeroTag provides washable and updatable digital sticky notes for food and drink packaging. This solution streamlines household food management and reduces waste and dependency on single-use packaging. The smart organization labels simplify food tracking amidst life’s chaos, which makes meal planning efficient and enjoyable. By easily monitoring food inventory and expiration dates, households make informed decisions, promoting sustainability and healthier eating habits. ZeroTag smart stickers foster smart consumption and reduce food waste.
4. ForgeStop
- Founding Year: 2019
- Employee Range: 2-10
- Location: USA
- Signal Strength: Medium
- What they do: ForgeStop specializes in NFC-enabled smart label systems that ensure secure and instant product verification. Leveraging AI-driven algorithms, the platform delivers robust anti-counterfeiting measures by instantly identifying and alerting any replication attempts. The company keeps track of products even after they leave the supply chain by collecting track and trace data through customer scans. This prevents smuggling, gray market selling, theft, and unauthorized distribution. ForgeStop assists businesses in fighting counterfeiting by protecting consumers, brands, and products with easily accessible product authentication solutions.
5. Akuratemp
- Founding Year: 2020
- Employee Range: 11-50
- Location: USA
- Signal Strength: Very Strong
- What they do: Akuratemp manufactures temperature-controlled packaging to reduce waste and the cost of ownership for the healthcare industry. Its smart packaging utilizes phase change materials (PCM) technology to maintain consistent temperatures during transportation and ensure the integrity of biological specimens. Further, IoT sensors provide real-time data visibility through their proprietary cloud-based monitoring system and allow users to track payload thermal integrity, package geo-location, and support supply chain management. Akuratemp provides healthcare and pharmaceutical industries with a reliable and secure method for transporting temperature-sensitive healthcare products.
6. Fruitortal
- Founding Year: 2021
- Employee Range: 2-10
- Location: Canada
- Signal Strength: Weak
- What they do: Fruitortal integrates inflatable design with nano coating to enhance fruit preservation, thereby maintaining quality and safety throughout transportation. This packaging system provides adjustable cushioning to protect fruits during transportation and reduces physical damage. Further, the nano-coating enhances fruit preservation and prevents spoilage, thus extending their shelf life and minimizing waste. This packaging boasts biodegradability and customizable space for controlled pressure and inflation during fruit storage. Fruitortal monitors fruit quality, prevents spoilage, and ensures long-lasting freshness.
7. Shieldtag
- Founding Year: 2020
- Employee Range: 11-50
- Location: Indonesia
- Signal Strength: Very Strong
- What they do: Shieldtag designs holographic stickers to combat counterfeiting and ensure product authenticity. These stickers integrate advanced security features like 3D holography, color-shifting visuals, and tamper-evident designs, which makes them difficult to replicate. This solution allows customers to instantly verify product authenticity by scanning the unique QR code on each sticker using their phones. The company enables brands to maintain supply chain security with their selection of sticker materials, some of which leave a visible pattern or custom message upon removal for added protection. The holographic stickers present a secure solution that ensures product integrity and brand enhancement within the packaging industry.
8. Prove Anything
- Founding Year: 2021
- Employee Range: 2-10
- Location: UK
- Signal Strength: Strong
- What they do: Prove Anything creates a connected packaging and digital product passport toolset for the food and beverage industry. The company integrates QR codes and sensors to monitor product location, temperature, and humidity. This solution provides real-time tracking and data analytics that enable precise supply chain management and inventory insights. The technology supports secure data sharing among producers, retailers, and other supply chain participants, thereby facilitating faster and more accurate decision-making. This reduces administrative costs and prevents errors or fraud.
9. Signet Tags
- Founding Year: 2022
- Employee Range: 11-50
- Location: India
- Signal Strength: Medium Strong
- What they do: Signet Tags produces NFC tags for the cosmetics and perfume industries. It leverages tamper-proof blockchain technology to track each item from the production line to product opening, featuring refilling protection and anti-peeling measures. The style of the smart tags is customized to complement the label, package, or bottle design. In addition, it develops an app that enables customers to authenticate the product. With a single click, the app grants instant access to product history, certifications, and intended applications. Moreover, this solution is based on QR code and image recognition, which allows for quicker verification of purchases. Signet Tags aid businesses protect their products while providing customers with confidence in their purchases.
10. PackBack
- Founding Year: 2021
- Employee Range: 11-50
- Location: Netherlands
- Signal Strength: Medium Strong
- What they do: PackBack offers a reusable packaging system to address environmental concerns related to single-use packaging. This system leverages reusable cups and smart bins to streamline the borrowing, returning, and tracking of reusables. PackBack provides an infrastructure for businesses to design, build, and scale their own reuse systems. Additionally, it develops a comprehensive platform to manage the reusable system by providing access to packaging analytics. The system supports accurate stock management and sustainability tracking, which allows businesses to monitor and achieve their environmental goals. Additional features include impact analytics for reporting on sustainability and a marketplace to attract new customers through the visibility of reusable options.
Quickly Find New Smart Packaging Solutions
Utilizing a SaaS platform like the Discovery Platform for identifying new smart packaging solutions provides significant benefits compared to traditional scouting methods:
- Streamlined Efficiency: The Discovery Platform offers advanced tools that streamline the scouting process. It replaces your hours of conventional desk research, saving time and resources in identifying smart packaging innovations.
- Access to Real-time Insights: Gain a competitive edge with up-to-date information on the latest trends in the smart packaging industry. The platform keeps you informed with near real-time updates on emerging smart packaging solutions and news, enabling you to make swift and informed decisions.
- Tailored Exploration: Customize your search to focus on specific niches within the smart packaging sector, such as smart tags, nanotechnology, or packaging sensors. The platform’s diverse filtering options allow you to target your scouting efforts precisely, ensuring that you find the most relevant and groundbreaking companies in the field.
Explore All New Smart Packaging Solutions!
We’ve explored the dynamic landscape of the smart packaging industry, examining the latest trends and spotlighting exceptional companies driving innovation. To dive deeper, download our free Packaging Report or schedule a demo of the Discovery Platform for a customized exploration of these groundbreaking developments. Interested in contributing your expertise on startups and tech? We’d love to hear from you.
