Libby’s Fruits and Vegetables has peddled canned foods since the 1800s. Now, the company has jumped into a new packaging format for vegetables in flexible, heat-and-serve pouches.

The microwavable, shelf-stable pouches are designed to be a timesaver, according to Bruce Wolcott, vp of marketing for brand owner Seneca Foods.

“Although most parents know vegetables are healthy, they are served at only 23% of dinners,” Wolcott says. “Parents need options for bringing vegetables to the table that they can feel good about and that help preserve important family time."

The easy-open, lightweight pouches stand up on shelves and, according to the brand owner, take up less space in kitchen cabinets. The products are processed and packaged to be shelf stable, and they can be heated and served hot, or cold for use in salads, other meals and appetizers.

A cool-touch area on both sides of the pouch at the top just under the tear line (no scissors needed) helps consumers handle the pouch safely after microwave heating.

Simple graphics highlight the packaging’s microwavable convenience, along with the healthy goodness of the “fresh” vegetables with an icon that leverages a drawing of a barn.

Libby’s/Seneca Foods declined to answer our questions about the packaging, so we don’t know how the pouches are processed. With so many newer processing methods available today, this could be a retort pouch—or it could be something else.

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