Packaging and labelling

Packaging is designing and producing the container or wrapper of a product. There are three levels:

• Primary package: the container closest to the product (a toothpaste tube).
• Secondary packaging: an extra layer that protects it and is thrown away when the product is used (the cardboard box around the tube).
• Transportation packaging: for storage and transport (a carton of 100 tubes).

Why packaging matters: rising standards of health and sanitation; self-service stores, where the package must 'sell' the product in place of a salesperson; room for innovation; and product differentiation, since a striking package sets a product apart.

Functions of packaging: identification of the product; protection against breakage, leakage and spoiling; making the product easy to use; and promotion.

A label is the part of a package that carries information. It:

• describes the product and its use;
• identifies the product or brand;
• grades it (a firm may sell its tea in labels of different colours for different qualities);
• promotes it, with attractive pictures and words;
• gives information required by law, such as the price, weight, date of manufacture and expiry, and health warnings.