The film industry assumed the mission of immersing movie audiences in thrilling stories and concepts. Films such as Pirates of the Caribbean or Master and Commander show how rough and complex the ocean can be. That’s what converts coastal people into so-called sea-dogs. People who work in farmed and wild fishing know the challenges that the goods face before they reach their destination. Prawns, langoustines, and other seafood products, often travel in big ships before reaching the supermarket shelves. To arrive there in perfect condition, the journey may be treacherous: storms, knocks, changes of climate and humidity. Assuring that a product reaches land intact can be a real odyssey. That’s why it’s essential to produce a packaging that acts as armour against adversities, while conserving the product’s freshness and quality.
What might sound like a distant and disconcerting challenge for most, is no more than the daily bread (or fish) and butter for the team in our plants. These packaging solutions that withstand adversities, but are also so necessary so that the product can reach its destination in perfect condition, are manufactured far away from the sea, but serve customers in 60 countries all around the world.
Close to the customer all around the world
A ship is one of the most aggressive environments for packaging. In fact, the packaging we make at the Hinojosa plants travels between 40 and 50 days on a ship in 90% humidity. Seafood product packaging requires very specific technical qualities, and therefore also requires an enormous commitment to innovation, given the difficulties it can encounter. The job of combining the inks, adhesives, varnishes and cardboards to withstand the calm as well as the rough conditions at sea, is built upon years of expertise.
This process of optimisation is not performed in isolation in our plants, but rather in close collaboration with the client. To produce a well-rounded packaging solution, the most important factor is to work closely with the client, adapting to their needs. This process of active listening dynamizes innovation and is one of the attributes that best characterises us. Throughout the year, some of our specialists visit the aquaculture installations, as well as the plants where the goods from the ships are received, to identify, on an ongoing continuum, whether the client’s processes have changed and whether they require any change to the packaging to adapt it to their needs.
For a long time now, investment in innovation cannot be understood without sustainability. Making a better packaging viable for the client, their market, and the environment, are key objectives. To achieve this, at Hinojosa, we are experts in sustainable packaging solutions. The paper that we use is FSC-certified and, during the process, we try to combine inks that consume as little energy as possible.
From inside out: a local perspective
With this packaging that we develop at plants specialising in the fishing sector, such as Valladolid, Vigo or the Portuguese Graphicsleader, we serve clients from more than 60 countries. Through them, we tackle the demands of the international market, without losing sight of the local aspect, generating a positive impact in the regions where our plants are located. Whilst in full international expansion, we are well aware that caring for the environment is key in our commitment to caring for what we have inside. Attracting talent, being a source of employment in the areas where we are present and caring for our closest environment are some of the company’s top priorities.
This packaging for fresh and frozen seafood products perfectly sums up the purpose of our packaging solutions: understanding our clients’ needs, innovating to create a perfect product and respecting, along with them, the environment in which we are all living.
To develop something that can just as easily fill the cold chambers of a supermarket as the berths of a ship, requires, as the refrain goes: “a rod, patience and skill”.
