The most common and most likely answer to this crossword clue is the 8 letter word SEGMENTS
I've seen this crossword clue in The Daily Telegraph
S
E
G
M
E
N
T
S
Buddy explains!
The straight part
We know that "parcels" is the straight/definition part of the clue. The straight part is often a synonym or definition, in this case parcels = segments.The cryptic/wordplay part
In cryptic crossword there's often an wordplay/cryptic part as well.This part involves a more complex hint, such as an anagram, homophone, hidden word, etc.
Sadly, We don't have an explanation for this specific crossword clue yet.
What does SEGMENTS mean?
SEGMENTS noun- A length of some object.
- One of the parts into which any body naturally separates or is divided; a part divided or cut off; a section; a portion.
- A portion.
- A portion.
- A part of a broadcast program, devoted to a topic.
- An Ethernet bus.
- A region of memory or a fragment of an executable file designated to contain a particular part of a program.
- (travel) A portion of an itinerary: it may be a flight or train between two cities, or a car or hotel booked in a particular city.
- A bearing representing only one part of a rounded object.
- To divide into segments or sections.