Fresh Produce Trays

Why Does Ventilation Matter More Than Box Strength Here?

We manufacture at our own UK facility, which matters for produce packaging specifically, since a vent pattern that needs adjusting mid-season can’t wait on an overseas reprint during harvest. Fresh produce keeps breathing after it’s picked, releasing moisture and, for some crops, gases, and a box that traps either one accelerates spoilage faster than rough handling ever would. That respiration-first thinking shapes every ventilated produce tray we build, the same way it informs the humidity testing on our Compostable Stand Up Pouches UK line for longer cold-chain journeys.

• UK-based manufacturing for fast turnaround during peak harvest
• In-house structural design team for vent pattern and stacking work
• Free sampling before committing to a full production run
• Order volumes that scale with seasonal demand, not a fixed annual contract

What Do Growers Ask Us Most About Produce Packaging?

• Does vent hole placement actually matter, or is total vent area all that counts?
• Can one box design work across different produce types, or does each crop need its own spec?
• How much does stacking height affect bruising on soft fruit specifically?

We work with growers in Kent and wholesale markets in Birmingham, and the vent placement question comes up on nearly every soft fruit project. Vent hole position matters as much as total open area, since a box can hit the right percentage of ventilation on paper and still trap moisture in a corner if the holes aren’t distributed where airflow actually needs to move- the same precision we bring to every Custom Rigid Boxes UK order built for a specific product shape.

A grower in Kent came to us after a soft fruit line kept arriving at wholesale with condensation pooling in the base of the tray, leading to mould before the fruit even reached a shop shelf. The tray’s total vent area met standard guidance, but the holes were clustered along one edge rather than spread across the base.