Flexible, Functional, and in Demand: Multifunctional Stand-Up Pouches

Whether for snacks, pet food or cosmetics – flexible stand-up pouches offer numerous advantages for consumers and manufacturers. Find out why they are increasingly replacing other types of packaging and which innovations will shape the future.

Woman feeding a dog with food from a stand-up pouch. — Stand-up pouches are increasingly being used in a wide range of different designs and formats, particularly in the food, cosmetics and pet food industries.

In the fast-paced world of modern consumption, convenience reigns supreme. Imagine a busy commuter indulging in a protein shake, a parent packing snacks for the kids, or a dog lover opening their pet's food – there's a good chance it'll be in a stand-up pouch. Once considered a niche alternative to rigid packaging, stand-up pouches have become a mainstay in the global packaging industry, with a market value expected to grow from $36.77 billion in 2025 to $64.17 billion in 2032.

This remarkable growth is not happening by accident. Consumers are demanding lightweight, resealable and environmentally friendly solutions, while manufacturers are looking for cost-effective, sustainable and functional packaging. The result? A flexible, durable and customisable alternative to traditional metal tins and glass jars. ‘The shift from rigid materials such as tins, canisters and glass to flexible packaging is a key driver of this trend. This change is driven by advantages such as lower weight, easy handling and efficient logistics. Not only do stand-up pouches reduce transport costs, they also offer excellent presentation at the point of sale,’ emphasises Jan-Mark Wilke, Business Development Manager Fresh Food Europe at Mondi.

Printed or unprinted, the stand-up pouch is becoming more and more popular. Daniel Richter from the Infolio packaging company sales team sees the reason for this as obvious: ‘It is a multifunctional all-rounder that impresses not only with its versatile applications in the food and non-food sectors, but also with its properties’. For example, viewing windows allow a real view of the end product at the point of sale, while the integrated pressure seal closes the bag again after removal or protects the end product from environmental influences. According to Richter, additional features such as opening notches or the application of partial tactile coatings make the stand-up pouch an attractive packaging that also emphasises the value of the end product.

Examples of stand-up pouches from Wipf. — Instead of stand-up pouches made from a mix of materials, there is a growing preference for those made from a combination of monomaterials.

Applications for Stand-up Pouches

Stand-up pouches are increasingly to be found in a wide range of designs and formats, particularly in the food, cosmetics and pet food sectors. In the processed food sector, this trend is reflected in a growth rate of over 4 %. ‘In particular, there is strong demand for retortable pouches for soups and ready meals,’ emphasises Jan-Mark Wilke, adding: ‘Retort pouches offer a practical way of preserving food without compromising on taste or nutritional content.’

‘Retortable stand-up pouches are also in high demand in the pet food industry because they meet the high standards for product safety, shelf life and convenience,’ says Wilke. Particularly in the case of wet food, packaging must be able to withstand extreme temperatures and pressure during the sterilisation process in order to maximise shelf life and keep the product fresh. ‘Pet food manufacturers are increasingly looking for flexible packaging solutions that combine recyclability with a high level of product safety,’ adds the Mondi specialist. His company has also developed retortable mono-material solutions that replace aluminium and multi-material solutions for these applications and are also specially designed for recycling.

The Advantages of Stand-Up Pouch Bags

As a packaging format, stand-up pouches are not only attractive on the outside. Customers also appreciate the different options for filling quantities. Depending on the type of end product, filling sizes from 100 ml to 5,000 ml are possible. ‘This not only appeals to wholesalers, but also to start-up companies. They can use digital printing, for example, to easily bring their product to market in high-quality packaging,’ says Daniel Richter.

According to Richter, the existing stand-up pouch means that shelf space is not even necessarily required in wholesale and retail. The product can easily be presented in trays, which can also be attractively placed. But the stand-up pouch not only offers advantages for customers; under certain circumstances, it can also be lucrative for manufacturers to invest in this production method. ‘Stand-up pouches are often used by bottlers, brand owners and co-packers because of their high variability, low weight and space requirements for transporting and storing the empty packaging, as well as the large surface area and the associated information and marketing opportunities,’ says Stefano Di Maiolo, Vice President Sales & Business Development at the Swiss packaging company Wipf.
According to Di Maiolo, consumers mostly appreciate the user-friendliness that comes into play when shopping, transporting, storing and ultimately using the product. ‘Here, for example, the tear-open behaviour, the emptying of the contents, resealing options or even portioning and dosing options play a role,’ says Di Maiolo. Sometimes it's also about the possibility of smaller portion sizes or immediate usability after shopping. Even when it comes to disposal, advantages can be seen, as the space required for an empty bag is significantly less than for most other forms of packaging.

Packshot of a stand-up pouch from Mondi. — Sustainability is increasingly becoming the focus of stand-up pouches.<br>

In Future Even more Sustainable

As competition becomes ever fiercer and the demand for portable, functional and visually appealing packaging continues to grow, stand-up pouches are not just an industry trend – they are catching on in many areas. ‘In the future, consumers will hardly want to do without the conveniences offered by today's stand-up pouches,’ Di Maiolo is sure. User-friendliness remains a basic requirement for the stand-up pouch of the future. However, according to Di Maiolo, the idea of sustainability is coming more and more to the fore, ‘not only because of but also because of the corresponding legal changes that we will all face as part of the PPWR’. Instead of stand-up pouches made of multi-material mixes, the focus is therefore increasingly on stand-up pouches made of mono-material combinations to ensure recyclability. ‘This does not yet achieve the overarching goal of a genuinely circular economy, but it is an important further step in the right direction,’ says Di Maiolo.

Jan-Mark Wilke is also convinced that the stand-up pouch of the future will be characterised by sustainability and technical innovation: ‘The continuing “rigid to flexible” trend shows that the switch from rigid packaging to flexible solutions continues to be in high demand, both from companies and consumers. Changes in consumer behaviour show an increasing demand for recyclable packaging solutions that also ensure product protection.’