Water-permeable controlled atmosphere packaging device from cellophane and microporous film

A container for retarding the maturation of respiring fresh produce selected from the group consisting of fruits, vegetables, or flowers contained therein by creating within the container preselected carbon dioxide, oxygen, and moisture concentrations in the presence of said respiring fresh fruit, vegetables, or flowers, said container being constructed of a substantially gas-impermeable material completely enclosing said fresh fruit, vegetables, or flowers, said gas impermeable material having both a gas-permeable panel that is substantially impermeable to moisture in one or more of its walls to provide a controlled flow or flux of CO.sub.2 and O.sub.2 through its walls and a cellophane panel that is permeable to moisture while being substantially impermeable to the flow of O.sub.2 and CO.sub.2 in one or more of its walls to provide a controlled flow of moisture through its walls, wherein the gas-permeable panel is a microporous plastic membrane that is a uniaxially or biaxially oriented film of a polymer selected from a homopolymer, copolymer, or blends thereof of a polymeric material, sais oriented film having an oxygen and carbon dioxide permeance between about 5,000 and 10,000,000 cc/100 in.sup.2 -atm-day, the permeance and area of the membrane being such as to provide both a flux of O.sub.2 and CO.sub.2 approximately equal to the predicted O.sub.2 to CO.sub.2 respiration rates for not more than 3.0 kg of the enclosed fruit, vegetable, or flower, and having an O.sub.2 to CO.sub.2 permeance ratio of about 1 sufficient to maintain retardation of the maturation process of said produce for said 3.0 kg of enclosed produce, said cellophane panel having a water vapor permeance of from about 2-30 grams/100 in.sup.2 -day and area sufficient to vent from said container excess moisture liberated from said respiring produce to prevent slimy wet surfaces on said produce without inducing excessive drying out of said produce.