Abstract
Many older adults have difficulty opening food packages, and even though they comprise the fastest growing segment of our population, the development of easy to open food packaging has been overlooked by the food industry (Costa and Jongen in Crit Rev Food Sci Nutr 50(6):489–502. 10.1080/10408390802544553, 2010); Hensel in Food Technol 66(12):23–30, 2012). The ability to use pinch is required to open food packages, but there is limited evidence regarding how much pinch force is required for different types of food packaging. This study used sensor technology to identify the force required to open several types of food packages which are typically used by older adults. Individuals over the age of 50 opened 15 different food packages and the average force in pounds required to open each type was obtained. The average force employed differed by sex for many food products and ranged from 1.28 to 7.27 kg. The information obtained from this study is useful both for healthcare professionals working with older adults and individuals with pathology of the hand, and for the food packaging industry.