What U.S. Buyers Asked About Bagasse Packaging at NRA Show 2023
At the National Restaurant Association Show 2023 in Chicago, many foodservice packaging conversations began with a practical question: what happens to the package after the meal leaves the restaurant?
For restaurants, distributors, catering suppliers and takeaway-focused foodservice brands, packaging has to do much more than hold food for a few minutes. It needs to maintain its structure during filling, stacking, pickup, delivery and transportation while handling heat, grease, moisture and movement.
That made NRA Show 2023 an important opportunity for Grizzlies to meet U.S. foodservice buyers and discuss how sugarcane bagasse tableware and molded fiber packaging could perform in real restaurant operations.
Why NRA Show 2023 Mattered for Foodservice Packaging
The National Restaurant Association Show 2023 took place from May 20 to May 23 at McCormick Place in Chicago, bringing together restaurant operators, foodservice distributors, hospitality professionals, manufacturers and suppliers from across the industry.
For packaging buyers, the exhibition offered an opportunity to evaluate products around actual restaurant applications rather than catalogue specifications alone.
The questions we heard were practical:
- Will the container maintain its structure with hot food?
- Can it handle fried food, grease and sauces?
- Will it stack securely during takeaway and delivery?
- Can different meal components be separated?
- Can the packaging support food-contact requirements?
- Are PFAS-free options available?
- Can the supplier support high-volume restaurant or distributor programs?
For U.S. foodservice customers, these questions often mattered just as much as sustainability claims.
Takeaway Packaging Has to Survive the Entire Journey
A food container may spend only a few minutes on the restaurant counter, but its real test begins after the order is packed.
During pickup and delivery, packaging may be exposed to stacking pressure, movement, condensation, heat and grease. If the structure softens or the lid does not remain secure, the customer experience can quickly deteriorate.
This is why buyers at NRA Show were interested in molded fiber packaging designed around actual takeaway conditions.
Grizzlies offers a range of bagasse food containers for takeaway meals, prepared food and foodservice applications, including rectangular and square formats in different capacities.
For example, our 750ml, 1000ml and 1300ml rectangular bagasse food containers can be paired with bagasse or PET lids depending on the project and intended application.
Selecting the correct container therefore involves more than choosing volume. Food type, portion size, holding time, lid structure and transportation conditions all need to be considered together.
Hot Food and Grease Were Major Performance Questions
U.S. restaurants frequently need packaging for burgers, fried chicken, fries, breakfast items, sauced meals and other oily foods.
These applications place significant demands on fiber-based packaging.
The package must resist softening, staining and leakage while maintaining enough structural strength to support the meal during transport.
For molded fiber products, buyers therefore discussed:
- grease resistance;
- moisture resistance;
- heat tolerance;
- structural rigidity;
- surface performance;
- holding time;
- stacking performance.
Rather than treating all bagasse packaging as identical, buyers increasingly wanted to match the product structure and barrier performance to the actual menu application.
Why Bagasse Clamshells Fit Many Restaurant Applications
Hinged containers remain one of the most practical packaging formats for quick-service restaurants, takeaway counters and delivery meals.
The integrated lid and base simplify packing while allowing restaurants to serve burgers, rice meals, fried foods, sandwiches and combination meals in a single package.
Our 9 × 6 inch bagasse clamshell provides approximately 1000ml capacity and is designed for takeaway and meal-service applications.
For larger combination meals, Grizzlies also supplies 8 × 8 inch and 9 × 9 inch three-compartment bagasse clamshells.
Compartment structures can be particularly useful when restaurants need to separate mains, side dishes, vegetables or sauces within the same meal.
For buyers, the most suitable clamshell should be selected according to menu design, portion size, food temperature and expected transport time.
PFAS-Free Packaging Became Part of the Grease-Resistance Conversation
By 2023, U.S. buyers were increasingly connecting grease resistance with chemical compliance.
PFAS had become an important topic for fiber-based food packaging because certain fluorinated substances had historically been used to provide grease-resistant properties.
As regulatory and industry attention increased, more buyers began asking specifically about PFAS-free molded fiber packaging.
This created an important technical challenge: removing unwanted substances cannot come at the expense of the performance required for real restaurant use.
A successful barrier system still needs to provide suitable resistance to oil, moisture and heat for the intended food application.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration later announced in 2024 that grease-proofing substances containing PFAS were no longer being sold for food-contact use in the U.S. market, reflecting the broader regulatory direction that buyers were already watching closely in 2023.
For professional foodservice procurement, this means barrier chemistry, food-contact requirements and practical product performance need to be considered together.
Food Contact Safety Cannot Be Separated from Packaging Performance
Restaurant packaging comes into direct contact with food, often under demanding conditions.
Hot meals, oily food, acidic sauces and extended holding times can all influence the performance requirements of the packaging material.
For U.S. buyers, discussions therefore included not only compostability but also:
- material composition;
- food-contact suitability;
- barrier treatment;
- temperature conditions;
- intended food use;
- supporting test documentation.
The U.S. FDA explains that substances used in materials that contact food may fall within food-contact requirements depending on their intended use and potential migration.
This is why buyers should evaluate product documentation together with the actual food application rather than relying only on broad environmental claims.
Delivery Packaging Is Part of the Restaurant Experience
For off-premise dining, the packaging becomes part of the restaurant's customer experience.
A meal may leave the kitchen in perfect condition but still arrive poorly if the package loses strength, traps excessive moisture, leaks or allows different foods to mix together.
Packaging can influence:
- food presentation;
- temperature retention;
- portion separation;
- leakage control;
- stacking stability;
- customer perception.
This is especially important for restaurants operating delivery, takeaway and catering programs at scale.
Different meal types require different packaging structures, which is why a full bagasse foodservice packaging range can be useful for distributors and restaurant supply businesses serving multiple menu categories.
Different Foodservice Channels Need Different Formats
Another important lesson from NRA Show 2023 was that the same packaging solution does not fit every foodservice business.
A fast-casual restaurant may need hinged meal boxes. A supermarket prepared-food counter may prefer containers with transparent lids. Catering companies may require large compartment trays, while casual dining operations may use plates, bowls and portion containers.
Grizzlies' molded fiber range includes food containers, clamshells, plates, trays and other formats designed for different commercial uses.
For dine-in and catering applications, buyers can also explore our bagasse sugarcane plates, including round, square, oval and compartment formats.
The goal is not to replace every package with the same molded fiber product, but to select the most appropriate structure for each foodservice application.
Customization Was About Operations, Not Just Branding
Many U.S. customers also discussed customized foodservice packaging at NRA Show 2023.
For molded fiber packaging, customization extends beyond adding a logo or changing the outer carton.
OEM and ODM projects may involve:
- custom dimensions;
- different depths;
- special compartment layouts;
- lid compatibility;
- barrier requirements;
- custom molds;
- private label packaging;
- master-carton specifications.
Grizzlies Industries operates 11 production bases with more than 280 automated forming machines and has experience in mold development and customized bagasse pulp products.
For restaurant chains, distributors and private label customers, these capabilities allow packaging projects to be developed around actual operational requirements rather than only existing catalogue products.
Restaurant Buyers Also Asked About Supply Stability
Performance was not the only concern.
Large foodservice customers need to know that a product can be supplied consistently after it has been introduced into a restaurant or distribution program.
Buyers therefore discussed:
- production capacity;
- repeat-order consistency;
- quality control;
- lead times;
- carton packing;
- container loading;
- international shipping experience.
For high-volume restaurant programs, switching packaging unexpectedly can create operational and inventory problems.
A reliable supplier therefore needs to combine product development with stable mass production.
What We Learned from U.S. Foodservice Buyers
NRA Show 2023 reinforced an important point: sustainable packaging succeeds in foodservice only when it also works operationally.
U.S. buyers wanted to discuss grease resistance, hot-food performance, delivery, PFAS-free requirements, food-contact safety, customization and supply reliability together.
For Grizzlies, meeting customers face to face provided valuable insight into how restaurants, distributors and catering companies evaluate molded fiber packaging under real commercial conditions.
Those conversations continue to influence how we develop bagasse containers, clamshells, plates, trays and customized molded fiber packaging for international foodservice programs.
Sourcing Bagasse Packaging for U.S. Foodservice
If you are developing a foodservice packaging program for restaurants, takeaway, delivery, catering, prepared food or distribution, product selection should begin with the actual food application.
Consider food temperature, grease level, holding time, portion size, transport conditions, lid requirements, compliance and expected order volume before selecting the final structure.
Grizzlies supports international B2B customers with molded fiber food packaging, OEM and ODM development, product customization and bulk manufacturing.
If you are sourcing bagasse food containers, clamshells, molded fiber plates, trays or customized takeaway packaging for the U.S. market, contact Grizzlies to discuss samples, specifications, compliance requirements and bulk-order planning.