Including fresh fruits and vegetables in our everyday diet is important, as their vitamins and nutrients fight for your body, rather than working against it. The hardest part about eating these healthy foods and not falling back on salty, sugary, processed food is keeping them fresh, since a peach or pepper will always spoil more quickly than cookies or chips. Surprisingly, foam can play a meaningful role in keeping many fruits and vegetables fresh, saving the money wasted when we throw out rotten food, and the time saved by not having to make a daily trip to the grocery to stock up.
In stores, fresh produce is kept in shelving units that chill and mist the food. Keeping this food from rotting or drying out is important so it doesn’t go bad before it gets sold. Cushioning foam materials are often included as part of these shelving displays, as they’re non-absorbent and soft enough to keep the food from bruising or rotting due to pressure. The idea of food packaging pads is applied outside of the cooling shelves as well, seen in the polyethylene webbing sleeves that individually wrap around delicate fruits that don’t require refrigeration.
Fruits that easily bruise require shipping foam-style eggcrate displays that keep them in place and prevent them from easily rolling around and damaging one another as people make their selections. The easier a fruit can bruise, the greater the chance of in-store loss as people refuse to buy them. Holders often feature a layer of polyethylene foam over their convoluted forms to reduce the impact of fruit tumbling into a vacated spot.
In the home, excessive moisture can also hasten rotting, especially for fruits like berries that are packaged in plastic tubs. Thin sheets of reticulated quick-drying foam can be used as a layer between fruit and the shelf or tub will that allow air to pass while keeping pressure and excess moisture away from the fruit, keeping them fresher, for longer. Paper towel under the foam layer makes cleaning easy too!