INVASEC: Innovation in sustainable packaging for more responsible food consumption

INVASEC is a cooperation project led by EROSKI, together with the OKELGINTZA and AUZO LAGUN cooperatives, which aims to promote innovation and sustainability in meat product packaging. The initiative seeks to develop and validate sustainable packaging solutions that guarantee food quality, safety, and freshness, while reducing the environmental impact associated with the use of conventional plastics.

The project focuses on evaluating four types of advanced packaging based on recyclable, recycled, and biodegradable materials, such as flexible rPET, bio-based PLA, and wood-derived materials with lignocellulosic film. These solutions will be tested under real production, packaging, distribution, and storage conditions to determine their technical, economic, and environmental viability in the fresh-cut meat sector.

INVASEC not only seeks to innovate in materials, but also to promote a circular economy model that encourages the reuse and recyclability of resources, reducing waste and greenhouse gas emissions. Through collaboration between the project partners, the aim is to generate knowledge applicable to the Basque food industry as a whole and to strengthen the competitiveness of the primary sector.

For EROSKI, INVASEC is part of its Sustainability and Responsible Consumption Strategy, which aims to minimize environmental impact throughout the value chain and move towards climate neutrality by 2050. This project reinforces the cooperative’s commitment to eco-design packaging, reducing food waste, and improving logistics efficiency, contributing to a more sustainable, healthy, and fair food system.

The initiative also has an important social and territorial component: by involving Basque cooperatives in the livestock, collective catering, and distribution sectors, it strengthens the local agri-food fabric, promotes intersectoral cooperation, and encourages the modernization of the sector.

The INVASEC project has received funding from the Basque Government within the framework of the call for grants for innovation, through cooperation, in the agri-food and wood value chains of the Basque Autonomous Community 2024, and from the European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development (EAFRD).

With this initiative, EROSKI reaffirms its role as a driving force for sustainable innovation, actively contributing to the transformation of the food chain towards a more circular, efficient, and environmentally friendly model.