OREO PACKAGING

In 1912, Nabisco, then known as The National Biscuit Company, first introduced the Oreo. The original packaging for the now-famous cookie was in the form of a tin box with a removable lid. The label on the tin was very ornamental and made the tin an interesting keepsake. The metal packaging surely helped preserve freshness as it made it easy to reseal. However, the tin was rather bulky. They could potentially be repurposed for other things, and of course simply throwing them out with the usual garbage was another obvious option, but when the cost of the packaging is a factor for a consumer it's difficult not to want a better option.

Over the years, Nabisco has changed the packaging for the Oreo, moving to a cardboard box and today to something entirely different to what the cookie debuted in. Today Oreos come in a grooved, thin plastic tray which sits inside a plastic wrap. The wrap contains an opening at the wide, flat top of the package. The opening is covered by a resealable adhesive flap that lifts to unveil access to the cookies. This new iteration of this plastic packaging is surprisingly effective at sealing in freshness compared to older versions that required the plastic tray to slide in and out of its encasing wrap without the ability to really close the package.

This type of packaging, while more complex in its design, is made of more cost-effective materials. This makes it easier to dispose of and makes the cookie overall more accessible to the consumer. Unfortunately part of the nature of our evermore disposal society is that sustainability is not always accounted for.