TikTok Is Sick And Tired Of Conventional Bacon Packaging
A lot goes into product packaging that most of us don't think about, and sometimes the packaging just doesn't make any sense. Take bacon, for example. More often than not, bacon is tightly packaged in plastic with individual bacon strips slightly spread out and not stacked, per Cracked. It's referred to as a shingle style, and most people typically flip the package of bacon over to the back and look through a small plastic window to see the meat and fat of the bacon. Interestingly, there's actually a law that was created in 1973 by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) that says that bacon arranged in a shingle-style packaging has to have the window in the back that reveals the meat in the package. The reason for this is to prevent customers from feeling cheated by not being able to fully see the meat they're purchasing.
However, the most frustrating thing about bacon's packaging is that it's not sealable. It's an issue that most of us have faced, and some people on the r/cooking Reddit thread actually discussed the pain of bacon packaging back in 2017, so it's been an ongoing problem. Now, whether you use the whole pack of bacon all at once or not, it would be nice to have the option of saving the pack for later. Thankfully, one TikTok user is putting their foot down and bringing attention to just how inconvenient and messy bacon packaging is.
Bacon companies don't see a big enough demand to change their packaging
A TikTok user vented about their thoughts on the typical packaging style that bacon comes in. Starting their rant, "This is a message for Oscar Mayer because now we got beef," they continue to make valid points as to why the conventional bacon packaging is frustrating for consumers. Since they're only cooking for one person, they don't understand why there isn't a zipper on the packaging or some other way to reseal it to prevent the whole pack of bacon from going bad. They admitted that they could get a large plastic bag to put the opened bacon in but think that's a wasteful solution. Several commenters had the original poster's back and tagged Oscar Mayer, asking them to improve the bacon packaging.
According to a few popular bacon brands, there just isn't a huge demand for a resealable package for bacon, per TODAY. Director of brand management for organic and natural meat company Applegate, Gina Gancheva said that a majority of the customers that buy the standard eight-ounce package of Applegate bacon use it all once they open the package. Furthermore, meat processing company Smithfield's vice president Jim Monroe said that because homes with single residents or a couple of residents tend to make up less of their customer demographic so there isn't a big enough reason for a change in packaging as Monroe sees it.