What Are Wicket Bags? A Staple of High-Speed Packing

Wicket bags are one of the most efficient and widely used packaging formats in food, retail, and industrial applications. Known for their speed, consistency, and automation compatibility, they’re a key product for blown film manufacturers like M Plastics.  

Despite how common they are, many buyers and users don’t know what “wicketed” really means — or how these bags are made.

Defining a Wicket Bag

A wicket bag is a stack of plastic bags held together by two metal wires (wickets) that run through punched holes near the top of the bag. The holes are reinforced with a lip or header to support fast dispensing and separation. 

The wicketed stack sits on an automatic or semi-automatic packaging machine, which pulls bags off the wicket one at a time to be filled and sealed. The format helps speed up the packing process, reduce labor, and ensure more consistent performance. 

How Wicket Bags Are Used?  

Wicketed bags are popular in environments where volume, speed, and hygiene matter. Common applications include: 

• Bakery items (bread, tortillas, rolls) 

• Produce and fruit packing 

• Ice bags 

• Hardware and small parts 

• Medical device packaging 

• Frozen food lines

Because wicket bags are easy to load and dispense, they work well with automated and manual operations alike — especially where cleanliness and consistency are critical. 

How M Plastics Makes Wicket Bags?

At M Plastics, our wicketed bags are made off-line — meaning the bags go straight from extrusion to roll, then to printing (if needed) then to converting. 

• Less contamination 

• Higher speed 

• Lower material waste 

• Cleaner stacks ready for boxing

The most common wicket format we produce is gusseted with a bottom seal, though we also make custom layflat wicket bags depending on the application. 

We use our own internal scrap and reprocess it as regrind to reduce waste and maintain material consistency.  

Customizing Wicket Bags for Your Operation 

While wicket bags may look simple, they can be tailored in many ways depending on the packing line and product: 

• Bag size (width, length, gusset depth) 

• Lip size above the wicket holes 

• Number of perforations 

• Printing or labeling needs 

• Film gauge (thickness) 

Knowing the packing equipment used helps us adjust bag orientation and wicket spacing to ensure a perfect fit for the production line. 

Final Thoughts

Wicket bags are a behind-the-scenes packaging hero — fast, clean, and scalable. Whether they’re lining a bakery’s packing line or supporting a frozen food operation, they help products move faster and more efficiently from plant to shelf.