A Perspective on MAP Products in North America and Western Europe

Modified atmosphere packaged foods comprise a substantial and growing proportion of American and European food supplies, but mostly in distribution packaging. About one-third of fresh poultry in North America is master packed under modified atmosphere (MA) for refrigerated distribution to retail grocery and hotel/restaurant/institutional outlets. More than half of the poultry in the United States is master or bulk packed at central processing plants after prepackaging in retail sizes with about a third under altered internal gas, either O₂ removal or vacuum, followed by CO₂ back flush. Marinated poultry is vacuum packaged in high gas barrier retail packages for refrigerated distribution. In the United States, up to ten billion MA packages of food representing up to 100 billion pounds of food are produced and distributed annually. Among the most significant MA packaged items in North America are fresh pasta, sandwiches, fresh poultry, precooked poultry and cut vegetables.