All wrapped up
Many of the things we buy are wrapped in plastic. The wrapping helps to keep things fresh. It can also tell us about the food we are buying. The words printed on a plastic yoghurt pot tell us what flavour yoghurt is inside.
If this bottle of water is dropped it will not break.
Plastic is a good material for packaging because it doesn’t break easily like glass. Plastic is very light compared with glass or metal. This means it is easier to transport plastic bottles to shops. Vans and Lorries need to use less fuel to transport plastic bottles.
Plastic bottles keep chemicals safe.
Plastic is waterproof and can be resistant to chemicals. Plastic can be used to package harmful chemicals. Even if the plastic bottle is dropped the chemical won’t spill because plastic is shatterproof.
The plastic wrapper keeps the food fresh.
Plastic packaging is safe and hygienic. It helps to keep food fresh for longer so that less food is wasted. It protects the food from being damaged. The plastic film we use to cover foods is strong, waterproof, airtight and germproof.