Ilip broadens fresh food packaging portfolio with integrated absorption

Ilip, an ILPA Group company specializing in food packaging, will showcase its tray bottom with integrated mechanical absorption, alongside new formats designed to meet the different packaging requirements of fresh food, at Cibus Tec 2026 (Oct 27–30), Parma, Italy. 

Ilip is presenting its HeatSealingMaster and StretchMaster ranges, alongside the SliceMaster line, for meat, sliced products, fish, cheese, and fresh pasta applications.

The company aims to integrate technical performance with sustainability via solutions engineered to protect food, ensure reliability on packaging lines, and use resources more efficiently. Ilip says cutting the amount of raw material used and incorporating recycled materials should go hand in hand with maintaining the required performance. 

Giovanni Donini, business manager for Foodservice Packaging & Fresh Food Packaging at Ilip, says: “In food packaging, sustainability cannot be separated from performance. Reducing a tray’s weight or increasing its recycled material content only makes sense if the product continues to deliver the required levels of safety, preservation, and reliability on packaging lines.” 

“That is why we work to optimize materials and structures, with the aim of using resources more efficiently without compromising packaging functionality.” 

Replacing conventional solutions

The HeatSealingMaster range comprises heat-sealable trays for fresh food packaging featuring the Macrocell bottom, including modified-atmosphere packaging. 

Macrocell is developed for applications requiring a high capacity for containing exudates. The solution is available in MT230 and MT250 formats. It complements Ilip’s Microcell technology, available in the Evo and Duo versions. 

The range is available in three different materials, namely, Evo, made from monomaterial PET; Duo, made from PET/PE; and Bio, made from compostable bioplastic certified to EN 13432 standards. 

The two systems integrate mechanical absorption into the tray bottom, capturing and retaining exudates while eliminating the need for a conventional absorbent pad. The M230 8-Hamburger and 1/2 Gastro formats further expand the range’s applications. 

Ilip shares that the StretchMaster range is also expanding. The solution is developed for automatic packaging lines using stretch film or flow pack, incorporating a 195 × 144 mm format. According to the company, the Evo version is available in monomaterial PET with recycled content, as well as in compostable bioplastic, and can incorporate the Microcell bottom. 

The SliceMaster line provides heat-sealable trays featuring a recycled PET/ethylene vinyl alcohol/PE barrier structure for packaging cold cuts and sliced products in a modified atmosphere. 

In other food packaging innovations, ProAmpac unveiled the ProActive Intelligence Shelf Protect Series at Pack Expo International 2026 in Chicago, US. The solutions are developed for select meat, seafood, and dairy applications. 

Last month, MM Packaging Deeside, a UK-based subsidiary of Austrian MM Group, upgraded its GreenPeel fiber-based tray with a double-rim structure that aims to enhance strength, seal integrity, and retail performance for fresh protein packaging.