Most food waste happens at home, after the package is opened. Here’s how a reliable reseal helps consumers use more of what they buy — and where Sealstrip fits.

Food waste is an enormous, expensive problem — and most of it happens after the groceries are home. ReFED estimates that about a quarter of the U.S. food supply goes to waste each year, and consumer households are the single biggest source. USDA puts total U.S. food waste at roughly 30–40% of the food supply, and the UN’s 2024 Food Waste Index attributes about 60% of global food waste to households. A large share of that is simply food that goes stale or spoils after the package is opened — which is exactly where resealable packaging earns its keep.

Why the reseal matters more than people think

Once a bag is opened, freshness is on a clock. Chips go stale, cheese dries out, coffee loses its aroma, bread starts to turn. If the package can’t close again well, the product degrades and a portion gets thrown away — the shopper paid for it, but never used it. A reseal that actually works keeps the product usable down to the last serving, so more of what someone buys gets eaten instead of tossed.

The reseal has to be easy — or people won’t use it

A reseal only cuts waste if people actually use it, every time. That’s where design matters: a mechanical zipper can be fiddly to line up, and if it’s a hassle to close, many people stop bothering. Sealstrip’s pressure-sensitive reseals have no tracks to line up — you simply press, and the package closes the first time, every time. Lower friction means the package actually gets resealed, use afer use.

Freshness and barrier protection

Some products need more than a reclose once they’re opened — they need a barrier. FreshPak BarrierPlus pairs an easy reseal with added barrier protection (plus a TamperTear tamper-evident feature) to help hold moisture, aroma, and shelf life after the first open. Sealstrip’s reseals are also designed to maintain the package’s barrier properties, so the feature protects freshness rather than compromising it.

Right-sizing servings

Resealable multi-serve packaging also lets households take what they need and save the rest, instead of over-portioning or feeling they have to finish an opened package before it spoils. It’s a small behavior change, but it adds up across a pantry — and across millions of homes.

Sealstrip’s resealable options

Sealstrip offers a range of reseals to match the product:

•  Peel&Seal — cost-effective, space-efficient reseal for everyday multi-serve products
• FreshPak — easy open, easy reseal, and tamper evident, with no tracks to line up
• FreshPak BarrierPlus — maintains barrier protection and tamper evidence for sensitive products - Pouch system available
• SealAcross — a full-width reseal that opens and recloses trays edge to edge - tray option also available
• Roll&Seal — a short length of reseal tape applied in the ideal spot, using less material

All apply in-line with retrofit applicators, and all are available as recycle-ready, mono-material VerdeSeal.

Less waste, and a lighter package

Cutting food waste and cutting packaging material aren’t in tension here. A tape-based reseal is lighter than a mechanical zipper, so you help consumers waste less food while using less plastic yourself — and if you’re tracking Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) fees, that lighter, mono-material feature helps on the compliance side too.

Frequently asked questions

How does resealable packaging reduce food waste?

Most food waste happens in the home, after opening, when product goes stale or spoils before it’s finished. A reliable reseal keeps opened product fresh longer, so more of what a shopper buys actually gets eaten instead of thrown away.

Does a zipper or a tape reseal reduce waste better?

The one people actually use. If a reseal is hard to close, consumers stop using it. Sealstrip’s tape reseals have no tracks to line up -simply press -so they tend to get reclosed more consistently, sitting after sitting.

What about products that go stale quickly?

For products that are sensitive even before opening, a barrier reseal like FreshPak BarrierPlus adds barrier-maintaining protection on top of the convenience, helping extend usable shelf life after the first open.

Can resealable packaging be sustainable too?

Yes. Sealstrip’s reseals are available as recycle-ready, mono-material VerdeSeal and are lighter than a mechanical zipper — so reducing food waste doesn’t mean adding hard-to-recycle plastic.

Is a resealable feature worth the added cost?

It’s worth weighing against the value of the product that would otherwise be wasted, plus the consumer goodwill of a package that stays fresh and easy to use. A tape-based reseal also uses less material than a zipper, which helps offset the cost.

About Sealstrip

Sealstrip Corporation has spent decades engineering easy-open and resealable convenience features for flexible packaging — pairing pressure-sensitive tapes with retrofit applicators built to fit the line you already run. Sealstrip is a WBENC-certified Women’s Business Enterprise (WBE), a member of the Flexible Packaging Association, and manufactures in the USA in a facility certified under the GFSI-recognized IFS PACsecure standard.

Want to help your customers waste less and come back for more? Sealstrip can add an easy, reliable reseal to a sample of your own packaging so you can test it. Call 1-888-658-7997.