What Is Clamshell Cannabis Packaging？

Looking to make your cannabis products stand out on the shelf while ensuring they are safe, reliable, and tamper-proof?

Clamshell Cannabis Packaging is the perfect solution. Known for its exceptional product visibility and protection, it is one of the leading packaging options in the cannabis industry by 2025.

I’m Alex, a 10-year printing industry expert, and I’ll provide you with a comprehensive overview of envases bivalvos para cannabis and how it can benefit your brand.

Definition

Clamshell cannabis packaging is a type of packaging container made from two identical pieces of material connected by a hinge. Its name comes from its shape, which resembles a clamshell.

It is typically made of plastic or cardboard packaging, as these materials effectively protect the cannabis while allowing consumers to clearly see its freshness, making this packaging highly popular.

In the cannabis industry, clamshell packaging is commonly used for displaying and protecting pre-rolled cigarettes, edible products, concentrates, and vape cartridges.

Key Features and Unique Advantages of Clamshell Packaging

Clamshell packaging combines multiple unique features to provide significant advantages for your cannabis brand.

Its core advantage lies in unparalleled product visibility. Typically made from transparent plastic, clamshell packaging allows consumers to directly view the product, enhancing appeal and trust—a critical factor for items such as vape cartridges or edible products.

In addition to its display functionality, clamshell packaging offers robust physical protection. Its rigid thermoformed plastic forms a durable outer shell that effectively prevents the contents from being crushed, impacted, or contaminated during transportation and on retail shelves. This structural integrity is essential for fragile cannabis products such as cannabis flowers, pre-rolled joints, concentrates, and cannabis cartridges.

Another major unique advantage is built-in tamper-evident functionality. Once sealed (typically via radio-frequency welding, heat sealing, or snap closures, sometimes supplemented with tamper-evident labels), clamshell packaging cannot be easily opened without causing visible damage, ensuring product integrity.

Additionally, many clamshell designs can effectively integrate child-resistant (CR) mechanisms, which are mandatory requirements for most regulated markets. This typically involves complex latches or multi-step opening procedures.

Finally, the design of clamshell packaging naturally accommodates brand inserts or labels, providing ample space for regulatory information, usage instructions, and eye-catching marketing messages without obstructing the product itself.

70% of our customers who purchase packaging from us choose this type of packaging for their premium product lines.

Common Applications for Cannabis Products

The flexibility of clamshell packaging makes it highly popular across various categories of cannabis products. You will commonly see it used for:

• E-cigarette cartridges and pens: Clamshell packaging provides safety protection and clear display for e-cigarette products, often featuring custom recesses to accommodate batteries or accessories.

• Edibles: Small, portioned edibles such as gummies, chocolates, or mints can be attractively displayed and protected using food-grade clamshell packaging. Custom-shaped recesses are particularly practical for these applications.

• Concentrates: Small bottles or containers holding concentrates (such as oils, waxes, or shards) are often placed inside larger clamshell packaging to enhance safety, CR functionality, and retail display appeal.

• Pre-rolled cigarettes: Though less versatile than tubular or boxed packaging, single-stick specialty pre-rolled cigarettes or small-packaged high-value pre-rolled cigarettes sometimes use clamshell packaging to achieve premium presentation and protection.

• Syringes and applicators: Products such as RSO or distillate syringes benefit from the safety, visibility, and often CR functionality provided by clamshell packaging.

The common thread is the need for visibility, protection, and CR and tamper-evident compliance features, which clamshell packaging effectively addresses.

Material Exploration: From Plastic to Sustainability

The primary material for clamshell hemp packaging is thermoplastic, chosen for its transparency, rigidity, and cost-effectiveness. Common types include:

• PET (polyethylene terephthalate): Widely used for its exceptional transparency, strength, and good barrier properties. It is also commonly recycled (please confirm local recycling capabilities).

• RPET (Recycled Polyethylene Terephthalate): As an increasingly popular sustainable option, RPET contains post-consumer recycled materials, reducing virgin plastic use and lowering environmental impact. It offers good transparency and strength.

• PVC (Polyvinyl Chloride): Though historically used, its chlorine content and recycling challenges have raised environmental concerns, leading to a gradual decline in usage.Many brands and regions are phasing out PVC, including hemployd.

• Other plastics (e.g., PP, PS): Polypropylene (PP) or polystyrene (PS) may be used for specific applications, but PET and RPET are more mainstream for transparent clamshell packaging.

Material thickness (specifications) is a key consideration, affecting rigidity, protective performance, and cost. If the clamshell comes into direct contact with food, food-grade plastic must be used.

From a sustainability perspective, the focus is on using materials like RPET, designing for recyclability (e.g., single-material designs, ensuring components are easy to separate if liners are used), and clearly labeling plastic types to assist consumers in recycling. While plastics offer numerous functional advantages, responsible material selection and end-of-life considerations are crucial.

Consejo: Choose materials with certifications like BPI o ASTM. These prove they meet eco-friendly standards.

Manufacturing Process Analysis

The production of cannabis clamshell packaging primarily employs the thermoforming process. Below is a brief overview of the process:

1. Mold Making: First, custom molds (tools) are designed and manufactured based on the shape and dimensions of the clamshell packaging. This is a critical step in determining the final product form.

2. Sheet Extrusion (if pre-made sheets are not used): Plastic resin (such as PET pellets) is melted and extruded into continuous sheets of a specific thickness.

3. Thermoforming: The plastic sheet is heated to a malleable state and then molded into the mold or around the mold. This can be achieved through various methods:

   • Vacuum forming: A vacuum is used to tightly adhere the heated plastic sheet to the mold’s contours.

   • Pressure forming: In addition to vacuum, air pressure is applied to press the plastic sheet into the mold, enabling sharper details and more complex shapes.

4. Cooling and cutting (die-cutting): After forming, the plastic is cooled and solidified to maintain the mold shape. The formed shell-shaped parts are then cut from the plastic sheet using a die-cutting process to form final single pieces with clean edges and necessary hinge structures or closing mechanisms.

5. Quality control and packaging: The finished shell-shaped packaging undergoes quality checks for clarity, structural integrity, and dimensional accuracy before being packaged and prepared for shipment.

Additional steps may include punching holes for hinges or applying specific textures if the mold design supports these features. The high efficiency of this process makes it suitable for medium to large-scale production. The minimum order quantity is at least 5,000 units; otherwise, it wouldn’t be worth activating my million-dollar machine.

Brand Customization and Personalization Opportunities

Although clamshell packaging is typically transparent, it offers exceptional potential as a brand display medium, primarily through the following methods:

• Custom shapes and sizes (OEM/ODM): In addition to standard stock sizes, clamshells can be molded into unique shapes and sizes to perfectly fit products and create a customized display effect. This includes custom cavities for multi-piece kits (e.g., e-cigarette pens, cartridges, and chargers).

• Printed insert cards: This is the most popular and effective way to customize clamshell packaging.High-quality full-color printed cardboard or cardstock inserts can showcase vibrant graphics, detailed product information, compliance warnings, and persuasive marketing messages. The transparent clamshell packaging acts as a display case, highlighting the insert and product’s brand identity.

• Labels and stickers: Custom-printed labels or stickers can be applied to the outer surface of the clamshell for brand identification, tamper-proofing, or variable information (such as product names or batch numbers).

• Material color and transparency: While transparent materials are most commonly used to ensure visibility, plastics can be sourced or produced in various colors or different levels of transparency/semi-transparency, though this may sacrifice some visibility advantages.

• Surface texture (less commonly used): Some thermoforming molds can impart subtle textures to plastic surfaces, but this is less common in cannabis applications, as the industry typically prioritizes transparency.

Custom-fit clamshell packaging combined with professionally designed inserts can help brands achieve high visual impact and effectively convey a large amount of information.

Compliance management: CR features and labeling

Compliance is critical in the cannabis industry, and clamshell packaging can be designed to meet strict requirements:

• Child-resistant (CR) features: Clamshells can incorporate a variety of child-resistant mechanisms to comply with regulations such as ASTM D3475 or ISO 8317. These typically include:

  • Snap locks: Requires two or more independent actions to open (e.g., pressing a snap and sliding, or squeezing a specific point while pulling).

  • Hidden release points: Buttons or snaps are not easily visible and require tools or specific operating skills to open.

  • Secure seals: Ensure the packaging remains sealed when children attempt to open it. CR features must be certified and effectively integrated without unduly hindering adult use.

• Tamper-evident design: While some clamshell packaging latches have inherent tamper-evident features, these can be enhanced through the following methods:

  • Heat sealing or radio frequency welding: Seals the edges of the clamshell, preventing it from being opened without tearing or cutting the plastic.

  • Tamper-evident labels/stickers: Applied to seams or openings, these labels will break or display invalid information if tampered with.

• Label compatibility: Clamshell designs, especially when used with insert cards, provide ample flat surface areas to accommodate all mandatory label information. This includes state-specific compliance symbols, THC/CBD content, health warnings, batch numbers, production/expiration dates, and government warnings. The transparency of clamshell packaging ensures that these labels (typically located on the insert card) are clearly visible.

Collaborating with an experienced packaging manufacturer like us is crucial to ensuring your clamshell design not only looks great but also meets all relevant compliance standards for your target market.

Our design team of three not only has mastered the latest AI design techniques but also each has over 10 years of experience. Partnering with us means you have a reliable, solid partner who will continuously help you succeed and grow your business.