Worldwide innovations in packaging technology with a ‘touch of greenness” and an accent on sustainability and recyclability

As said in my previous article about the DuPont Packaging Awards 2012 in this post I write about the Microcellular Technology of InCycle CPET, Sulwhasoo Dahamsul’s cream jar, and the Tide PODS Liquid Unit Dose Laundry Detergent. But I want to start with one more winner: the AirOPack by IPS Innovative Packaging Solutions.

AirOPack, an Innovative Aerosol Dispenser Technology
Honoured for Excellence in Innovation and Sustainability, the AirOPack, by IPS Innovative Packaging Solutions AG in Switzerland, is a new, innovative technology to dispense fluids, high viscosity liquids and creams by using a patented pressure control device that relies on air instead of conventional hydrocarbon chemical propellants. This system can replace traditional aerosol products that are used today with conventional metal cans and chemical propellants.

This dispenser consists of a blow-moulded plastic container fitted with a compressed air chamber and a pressure control device to protect against pressure drop, improve ease of use and ensure the maximum amount of product can be extracted from the container. Since it is made entirely of plastic it can be recycled after use. AirOPack is unique to the aerosol dispenser industry. Consumers can see the product. Replacing flammable propellant gas with air also eliminates adverse effects on the environment.

AirOpack is an aerosol alternative based on pure compressed air instead of commonly used propellants. This technology makes it possible to fill liquids, creams, gels or foams into plastic containers instead of cans made of tinplate or aluminium and then to dispense the contents with constant pressure by means of a unique pressure-control system. When manufacturing the dispensers, CO2 emissions can be reduced by as much as 65% and energy consumption by approximately 20% compared to common aluminium aerosol cans.

The AirOpack dispensers are filled with the customer’s various products, labelled, packed and shipped ready-for-sale using a high-speed filling and automated packing line.

Microcellular Technology Keeps Food Containers Cool or Hot
Through the use of the ad-air solid-state microcellular plastics process, MicroGREEN Polymers Inc., uses non-reacting, recycled CO2 gas to thermoform recycled PET plastic rolls into inherently insulating trays and cups. The InCycle CPET trays and the cold party cups are 45% lighter than their solid plastic counterparts and are respectively 70% and 60% less dense, resulting in lower thermal conductivity. This allows consumers to handle CPET trays straight from the oven without being burnt and keeps the beverage in their cold party cups refreshingly cold, while providing significant environmental benefits.

Ad-air clean technology creates a microcellular structure in common thermoplastics. In contrast to melt-state chemical foaming processes, this technology does not require any harmful chemicals or VOCs, and the location and size of the micro-bubbles is precisely controllable. The material can then be printed as a flat sheet or converted by a number of processes such as: folding, thermoforming and convolute forming.

In the Ad-Air Technology, a roll of solid plastic is prepared for saturation by layering it with a porous material. The roll is then pressurized with a gas such as food grade CO2. The interleaved porous material provides a pathway for the gas to saturate the polymer roll. Once saturated, the polymer is removed from the vessel and heated. As the polymer softens, billions of gas bubbles nucleate in the polymer, reducing the density and causing expansion. In general, this process increases the length and width by 150% and the thickness by about 200%. This expansion results in a dramatic decrease in density, typically to about 20% density relative to the original polymer material.

Ad-air technology applies to most common thermoplastic polymers, including recycled PET (rPET) and biopolymers (PLA).
Ad-air technology can create open-celled materials. These open cells are dispersed throughout the surface of the sheet or in pre-defined patterns, creating channels through which liquid can flow if desired.

Jewel-like Brilliance in Injection Moulded Cosmetics Jar
Using insert injection moulding, Amore Pacific from Korea achieved a new level of design innovation with its Sulwhasoo Dahamsul cream jar. This process removed the gap between the inner cup and the outside packaging, eliminating light refraction that would diminish the appearance of the inner graphics.
The outside packaging easily adheres to the inner cup with DuPont Surlyn 3D overmoulding technology, offering transparency and additional aesthetic appeal. The brilliance of the inner cup graphics shine out, giving the cream jars a jewel-like appearance.

Surlyn is a commercial thermoplastic ionomer resin that was introduced by DuPont in the early 1960’s. Surlyn can be used in conventional extrusion/co-extrusion, blown film, cast film, and extrusion coating equipment designed for polyethylene resins.
Moulded goods made with Surlyn are virtually unbreakable, and offer unusual design freedom, combining toughness, clarity and chemical resistance. Thanks to a direct removal of this fully massive, isomorphic, and smooth piece from the mould, no mould parting line is visible, leaving the transparency of the cap perfect. The glass-clear appearance of Surlyn makes it the perfect complicated partner of fine glass and crystal.
It is one of the materials most favoured by designers, for complicated and bold designs.

Tide PODS Liquid Unit Dose Laundry Detergent
This new, brightly coloured liquid unit dose product, developed by Procter & Gamble, is the first three-chamber unit dose in this category, offering an ultra-convenient, 3-in-1 laundry detergent. The unit dose detergent features three chambers especially designed to brighten, fight stains and clean. Tide Pods also feature a film, from MonoSol, that dissolves and works effectively in all water temperatures.

Tide PODS eliminates spills and the need to measure and pour liquid detergents. The pre-measured unit dose pack uses a specially-developed film that dissolves completely in the wash, even in cold water, enabling consumers to reduce energy use by washing more loads in cold water. Tide PODS tubs, made of 25% recycled PET, and the stand-up bags, reduce plastics use by 50% per load and total packaging material use by 11% per load compared to liquid laundry detergent bottles.

Procter & Gamble warned the consumer that, as with all laundry products, Tide Pods packages should be kept closed and stored out of reach from children and away from pets and food. However it seems that this warning didn’t work quite well.

This week P&G announced that it is adding a child-resistant closure to Tide Pods packaging to deter children from eating the brightly coloured packets that look like candy. The company says that it plans to create a new double latch lid on tubs of Tide Pods “in the next couple of weeks”, as nearly 250 cases have been reported to poison control centres. No deaths have been reported.

That was my selection of the winners of the DuPont Packaging Awards 2012.

In myprivatebrand  of March 15, 2012, Perry Seelert , strategic partner of united* dsn, a design consultancy in New York and San Francisco, wrote about what he called: The Self-Congratulatory Syndrome.

I freely extract and interpret some of his words:
The Awards within the industry seem to have gotten a little crazy, with all the trade magazines and websites having their packaging of the year and annual package design winners. If these awards were more selective, they would feel more meaningful, but in many cases they are rewarding very mediocre design. Apparently it is a money cow for the organising media.
Through a critical eye, there is still so much potential in transforming the way the industry projects itself, and the push towards more credible marketing and branding. But the visual and environmental language of these shows fight against this if we are to be honest. Too often the agendas are the epitome of the “The Self-Congratulatory Syndrome”: monotonous speakers presenting case studies with innovative “NEW” ideas like” “compare & save” or maybe a new “value tier”. None of this screams “innovation”.
Too much praise, too little critique as of late. A little more critique can spur new ideas, new branding and a new way of measuring our success.

Consumer-Inspired Design Revolutionizes Laundry Experience with Tide PODS Liquid Unit Dose Laundry Detergent by Procter & Gamble

I must say, I fully agree with Perry. There are too many packaging awards and they don’t have any value. However, that said, there are some (too few really) very valuable Awards in the packaging world. Indisputable one of the best is the DuPont Packaging Award. At least DuPont is respected and consequently receives sufficient quality entries to be able to submit a well-founded juror-report. Fortunately the DuPont jurors are not blinded by fancy graphics and shapes, but include proper packaging technology improvements in their judgements. I don’t agree with all of the choices, but at least DuPont comes up, each year, with a fair share of real innovations in packaging. And that’s something you can’t say about most of the packaging award competitions.

DuPont Packaging Awards 2012
Several leading brands, Heinz, Kraft, Pepperidge Farm, Cadbury and Unilever , took home awards in the 24th DuPont Awards for Packaging Innovation, the industry’s longest-running, global, independently judged celebration of innovation and collaboration throughout the value chain.

I made a selection of the winners, I think are worth a closer look. In two articles (each one three innovations) I will describe the following winners:
1.    The FreshCase packaging technology for meat.
2.    The Kraft YES Pack.
3.    The Ultra-Freshness Preservation Freezing System.
4.    Sulhwasoo Dahamsul’s cream jar.
5.    The Tide PODS Liquid Unit Dose Laundry Detergent.
6.    And finally the Microcellular Technology of InCycle CPET

FreshCase Packaging for Fresh Red Meats
FreshCase packaging, developed by Curwood, Inc is claimed to be the first-ever, vacuum package for red meat that maintains the meat’s appetizing colour through a found-in-nature proprietary additive in the contact layer of the barrier package.

Traditional vacuum-packaged meat is “purple”, deemed distasteful by many consumers who equate colour with freshness. FreshCase packaging also extends shelf life 10 times longer than store-wrapped meat.
The combination of longer shelf life and more appetizing appearance promises to both reduce food waste and increase the availability of proteins in areas further away from food sources.

As an alternative for modified atmosphere (MAP) and expanded polystyrene (EPS) trays with PVC overwrap that dominate the case-ready meat segment, FreshCase enables 75% less markdowns/waste than store-wrapped meats, less landfill waste and reduces packaging materials up to 75%, compared to other case-ready formats, thereby improving sustainability.
Compared to case-ready EPS/PVC packages that are centrally packed, FreshCase packaging eliminates the aesthetic drawbacks of high-oxygen gas-flushed packaging, such as “black bones.” It also eliminates the appearance of excess packaging common with gas-flushed packaging due to the amount of headspace required in MAP packages.

Vacuum-packed FreshCase packages are hermetically sealed, eliminating the problem of leaky meat packages in the retail case, shopping cart and checkout counter.
FreshCase packaging is USDA-approved for a shelf life up to 36 days for whole muscle beef and 34 days for ground beef.

According to the DuPont Award jurors, FreshCase packaging addresses the important effort to help ensure food maintains its nutritional value and freshness and greatly reduces food waste from spoilage.

Kraft YES Pack, Easy-Open Condiment Package
In November 2010 I wrote on this blog about the Smart Bottle from ExoPack. Exopack’s Smart Bottle features a four sided sealed pouch that is blow moulded into a “bottle”. After filling, the four side-seals form the four vertical corners of a lightweight, semi-rigid, threaded “bottle”, the result of merging different packaging technologies together.

At that time I stated that the packaging was not yet commercially available, but was tested in volume sizes ranging from ½ gallon, up to 5 gallons. It can hold either dry or liquid contents and can be printed on all four sides.
And there it is in the market, introduced by Kraft Foods.

The Kraft YES Pack, which stands for Yield, Ease and Sustainability, is an environmentally friendly flexible gallon dressing package. Yes Pack is designed to help Foodservice Operators manage costs and improve back-of-house efficiencies with improved dressing yield of up to 99% (compared to rigid gallon jugs). The dual handled design allows for easy carrying and the smaller spout provides precision pouring.

In comparison to the production of the rigid gallon jug, the company claims, that the YES Pack is made with: 50% less energy, 60% less plastic, and 70% fewer CO2 emissions from transportation.

The Yes Pack is a stand-up pouch, made from a flexible nylon-polyethylene blend film, with dual handles, and a rigid screw cap closure that replaces the traditional rigid plastic container for salad dressings.

“We have eliminated 70% of the inbound transportation required to produce our salad dressing containers by no longer having trucks deliver empty bottles to Kraft”, the company stated. “Now, we manufacture Yes Pack at the same location as where our dressing is produced”.

Kraft partnered with PE International, a sustainability consulting company, to conduct a Life Cycle Assessment, which quantified the environmental benefits of the Yes Pack. The Life Cycle Assessment is a standardized method of evaluating environmental impacts throughout the life cycle of a product from raw material production, manufacturing and use, all the way through disposal.

The packaging is more compact than rigid jugs, and flattens when empty, which can provide easier disposal and lower waste-removal costs. When it comes to recyclability, the original rigid bottle is actually easier to recycle, as the Yes Pack may not be accepted for recycling in all areas. Kraft stated while the original rigid bottle is more accepted by recycling programs the recycling rate was low.

As of now, the Yes Pack is designed only for Kraft’s foodservice salad dressing portfolio.

Electro-Conductive Packaging Helps Keep Frozen Food ‘Fresh’
The Ultra-Freshness Preservation Freezing System, using high “Electric Potential” and Electro Conductive Packaging, is developed by Mutsumi Chemical Industry Co Ltd, in collaboration with Sun Electric Company Ltd and Enshu-Kasei Co Ltd, all from Japan.
The combination of rapid freezing and the innovative electro-conductive bag preserves food taste and texture, reducing the amount of edible food thrown away.

The Ultra-Freshness Preservation Freezing System uses technology proven in the electronics industry to ensure food quality and increase both shelf life and appeal. This rapid-freezing system uses both alternating and direct current, high “electric potential”, at the same time to rapidly cool the product without oxidization, reducing the size of ice crystals that form in food cells. This process relies on a unique package design that includes an electro conductive bag made of Linear-LDPE and DuPont Entira AS.

The electro conductive bag needs a bit of an explanation.
Antistatic, electrostatic dissipative (ESD) and conductive additives are migrating antistats which diffuse to the polymer surface over time, creating a thin layer that attracts water molecules. The water molecules provide a conductive pathway that prevents build-up of static electricity. Antistatic additives reduce a polymer’s surface resistivity to the range of 1010 to 1012 ohms/sq., providing a slow static decay rate that prevents charge accumulation.
Antistats are used widely in packaging such as film, thermoformed containers, and PET bottles, in which they help surfaces separate during production and reduce dust attraction for short-term cosmetic improvement.

Inherently dissipative polymers (IDPs) form a conductive polymer matrix or interpenetrating network within the base polymer, offering non-leaching, permanent static dissipation at a faster static decay rate than migrating antistats typically 108 to 1012 ohms/sq. surface resistivity, depending on amount and dispersion of the additive in the polymer. Unlike migrating antistats, most IDPs operate nearly independent of relative humidity, although surface resistivity will be slightly higher (less conductive) at low moisture levels. IDPs are colourable and non-sloughing, giving them an advantage over carbon blacks.

DuPont Packaging & Industrial Polymers family of high-performance modifiers impart specific desired properties to a wide variety of polymers. The first product in the DuPont Entira line to be introduced globally was Entira AS. Developed by DuPont-Mitsui Polychemicals Co Ltd, a joint venture between DuPont and Mitsui Chemicals Inc, Entira AS offers excellent antistatic properties, high frequency weldability and high moisture permeability.
DuPont’s Entira Antistat IDP is based on an ethylene ionomer, which makes it compatible with polyolefins as well as other polymers like ABS and polystyrene. This compatibility results in transparency and a smooth surface for polyolefin packaging and blow moulded containers. Because it does not migrate, Entira AS does not interfere with film sealing properties.

Entira Antistat SD 100 has food contact approvals and maintains resistivity of 107 to 1012 at low relative humidity levels (down to 12-15%), but is limited to lower processing temperatures.

These were the first three winners of the DuPont Packaging Awards 2012. Next article about the Sulhwasoo Dahamsul’s cream jar, the Tide PODS Liquid Unit Dose Laundry Detergent, and as last the Microcellular Technology of InCycle CPET.

This year the UK is in the spotlights of the world. First of all we have the Olympics and secondly, but not less important, it marks the Diamond Jubilee of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth.
On 6th February 1952, whilst staying in a remote part of Kenya, Princess Elizabeth received news of her father’s death and of her own accession to the throne. Her tour was abandoned and she flew back to London, where she was greeted by Prime Minister Winston Churchill. So on that day Princess Elizabeth became Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II when she acceded to the throne of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and became Head of the Commonwealth.
What better way to toast such a milestone than with a fine whisky of similar vintage. And with, important for this blog, presented in the most beautiful and exorbitant packaging. Glass bottles crafted by unique professionals.

Johnnie Walker’s Diamond Jubilee Scotch Whisky
From all whisky brands out there to celebrate the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee, the Johnnie Walker & Sons, the Scotch Whisky distillers by Appointment to Her Majesty The Queen, holds a special place.

Only 60 bottles of the Diamond Jubilee Scotch Whisky, made by Johnnie Walker, have been produced for sale, and are being offered to known collectors of rare and expensive whiskies. One will be gifted to the Queen and the others will be sold around the world for GBP 100,000 (USD 160,000) each.

The bottling, which took place 60 years to the day since the Queen’s accession on 6 February 1952, is a blend of rare malt and grain Scotch whiskies distilled in and maturing since 1952.

Johnnie Walker’s Diamond Jubilee Scotch Whisky is not just a blend of whiskies, but of a host of different crafts. The crystal diamond-shaped decanter is from Baccarat, its silver collar and stopper has been hand-crafted by Hamilton & Inches in Edinburgh and it resides inside a cabinet which has been made with wood from two of the Queen’s estates. There are two hand-etched Cumbrian crystal glasses and the presentation is completed with a white leather hand-bound book personalized by the Queen’s calligrapher Sally Mangum.

The diamond-shaped Baccarat crystal decanter stands on a crystal base with six radial legs to reflect the decades of the Queen’s reign, and is adorned with Britannia silver, selected for its purity.

Each edition also includes a pair of lead Cumbria Crystal glasses engraved by Philip Lawson Johnston and a commemorative artefact book, hand bound by Laura West at her Isle of Skye bindery and personalised for each owner by Sally Mangum, Calligrapher By Appointment to Her Majesty The Queen.

All the elements are housed in a chest made by the cabinet makers at N.E.J. Stevenson, incorporating oak from Sandringham to echo the whisky marrying casks and Caledonian pine from The Queen’s Balmoral Estate.

A minimum donation of £1 million from the sales of Diamond Jubilee by John Walker & Sons will be given to the Queen Elizabeth Scholarship Trust (QEST), a registered charity in England, which provides grants to British craftspeople and in doing so, keeps many highly specialized trades alive.

Of course there are more whisky distillers with Jubilee versions. Let’s have a look at Glen Grant. A brand I very much love as it is the only malt whisky I can buy (for a reasonable price) here in the Amazon delta. The rest is just scrap. So, Glen Grant’s Diamond Jubilee Whisky.

Glen Grant 60 Years Old Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Whisky
Gordon & MacPhail,  the Elgin based and family-run single malt specialist, has released just 85 bottles of Glen Grant 60 Years Old Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Whisky. They are on sale for the GBP 7,995 (USD 12,660). The 60-year-old malt from Glen Grant was originally distilled on 2 February 1952, just four days before the Queen acceded the throne.

The Jubilee Whisky is presented in a pyramid shaped crystal decanter adorned with a diamond shaped stopper. The crystal decanter and diamond shaped stopper have been created by the family owned company, Glencairn Crystal. Each decanter is expertly engraved (the script in-filled with silver) and uniquely numbered. The decanter carries an engraved crown with a sparking Swarovski crystal, set at the meeting point of the crowns two arches. A silver collar, placed around the neck of the decanter completes the presentation.

Two pieces of silver, created by Edinburgh based silversmith ScottishSilver, adorn the Single Malt. The first is an elegant Sterling silver collar engraved with the number “60”. The second is a Sterling silver stopper sealing the precious contents within the decanter. The silver stopper, which has the familiar G&M seal of quality stamped on it, can be removed and replaced with the diamond shaped crystal stopper should the owner so desire.

The decanter is packaged in a hand-crafted box made of Scottish Elm, felled a short distance from Holyrood House, the Queen’s official Scottish residence.Each box has been skilfully created by cabinet maker Ross Samson and his team at his workshop in East Kilbride. For over 12 years Ross has created a wide variety of furniture and cabinets and is a founding member of the Scottish Furniture Makers Association.

The wood was kiln dried for 6-8 weeks before arriving at Ross’s workshop. The planks were prepared and measured before being cut to size. Owners of this hand-crafted product will note the continuous grain on four sides of the box. Mitre lock joints were prepared and the diamond shapes were meticulously cut out using a jig saw. The glass panels were fastened in place before all sides of the box were carefully glued together.

The box was then cut to create two sections and locks were fitted. The box was then engraved and in-filled with a silver wax made from beeswax and a metallic pigment. To protect the wood, a handmade stain – made from bitumen and orange oil – was painstakingly applied. Finally the box was hand rubbed using wire wool. Harris Tweed was added to the base of the box.

Harris Tweed is the only fabric in the world governed by its own Act of Parliament. The law decrees that genuine Harris Tweed must be made from pure virgin wool which has been dyed and spun on the islands and hand-woven at the home of the weaver, in the Outer Hebrides of Scotland.

Gordon & MacPhail Glen Grant 60 Years Old nestles in luxurious, purple Harris Tweed, which lines the hand-crafted box. A jacket made from the same material protects the box and the precious contents.

The certificate to accompany Glen Grant 60 Years Old has been created by Piccolo Press. Based in Nairn in northern Scotland, Piccolo Press has retained the timeless skills of letterpress and engraving.
One side of the certificate uses amethyst coloured card and has the Gordon & MacPhail stag’s head logo die-stamped in silver. The flip side of the certificate has been die-stamped in silver, and letterpress printed in amethyst on white card. Once the two pieces of card have been laminated together a silver gilt edge has been added. An envelope, beautifully die-stamped in silver, completes the presentation.

As said in my previous article Fresh Produce Packaging, today we will see the Squircle clamshell of Hollandia, the Two Piece Display-Ready Asparagus Shipper, the Peel/Reseal Apio Squash Package Ocean Mist’s microwavable artichokes and Pattruss, the tetrahedral shaped salad bag from Japan.

Hollandia Live Gourmet Butter Lettuce
At the recent conference of the Produce Marketing Association the squircle clamshell of Hollandia Produce LLC won one of the five 2011 PMA Impact Awards for Excellence in Packaging.

The new Squircle design is an attractive improvement on the antiquated design of Hollandia’s Live Gourmet Living Butter Lettuce. An eye catching, colourful and communicative label compliments the new design and acts as a tamper evident seal for the new package.
One of the important factors that consumers told Hollandia through test markets and additional focus groups was that they wanted a clamshell they could open and close with one hand.

The new Squircle design (A squircle is a special case of a superellipse that has both the properties of a square and a circle) incorporates the best features of both a square and a circle to create the ultimate package for living lettuce.

Hollandia Produce LLC claims that the new form and function of the Squircle design reshape and optimize the space utilized to package the lettuce and enables automated packaging systems. Additionally the new form eliminates unused space in the master carton allowing for a 20% increase in units per pallet. A 15% source reduction in RPC PETE used to make the clamshell has been achieved and the new harness style companion master carton used to ship the product reduces total annual cardboard used to package the product by 40%.

Two Piece Display-Ready Asparagus Shipper
Gourmet Trading Company, a North American distributor of fresh asparagus and blueberries, won the Institute of Packaging Professionals (IoPP) 2012 AmeriStar Packaging Competition with its Two Piece Display-Ready Asparagus Shipper.

Developed in 2010 by Gourmet Trading Company and California Polytechnic State University San Luis Obispo the package offers the unique ability to be converted from a shipper to a display in the matter of seconds without the use of a box cutter.

The Two Piece Display-Ready Asparagus Shipper is filled the same way as a regular 11lb asparagus shipper. The simple instructions on the package make it easy for retail store employees to separate the top from the tray. The tray can be displayed on a 60 degree shelf creating a clean presentation with branding.

The display tray can hold bunches of asparagus vertically to enhance display appeal and to keep the butt ends in contact with a water-saturated pad. This moisture pad at the bottom of the tray keeps the asparagus looking fresh.

The shipper is made of corrugated polypropylene and accommodates manual set up and packing, while they can be palletised 20 per tier in an eight-tier stack for shipment.

The design of the die-cut, two-piece shipper maintains ventilation areas for hydro-cooling and fumigation of the asparagus and weighs the same as its predecessor (9.6 oz) yet has 27% greater compression strength.

The new design was validated against physical and ambient environment-related abuse experienced during distribution through the pre-shipment test standard ASTM D 4169.

Peel/Reseal Apio Squash Package
The thermoformed Peel/Reseal Apio Squash Package was developed by Clear Lam Packaging and provides consumers with an intuitive easy opening and closing feature for portion control. The peal/reseal film eliminates the need for traditional rigid lids and shrink-bands. The technology is incorporated into the lidding film, which can be printed to maximize branding opportunities. The film also can be hermetically sealed to a tray to help extend freshness.

Processors can apply the new peel and reseal lidding on conventional tray sealing lines. Modified atmosphere packaging can also be incorporated. The new package can be used for cut vegetables, fruits and other food items.

The packaging received at the recent conference of the Produce Marketing Association one of the five 2011 PMA Impact Awards for Excellence in Packaging.

Ocean Mist microwavable artichokes
It is well-known that many consumers view preparing of artichokes as the major barrier to purchase. Offering prepared artichokes makes eating fresh artichokes easy and convenient. The ability to pre-season the artichokes (prior to cooking) is an exclusive convenience attribute to the produce department.

Ocean Mist Farms new “Season & Steam” microwavable artichoke bag features two, fresh artichokes that are cleaned, trimmed and ready to cook. The packaging gives users the option to open the bag, pre-season the artichokes to their preference, then reseal the package and steam by microwave. All within the same bag.

The bag, which was in test market at retail stores in northern California last fall, is now more widely available at grocery stores.

The “Season & Steam” microwavable artichoke bag was a finalist in the PMA’s annual innovation in packaging awards competition. The company was one of five fresh produce companies named a packaging innovator by the Produce Marketing Assn. (PMA). The award recognizes companies with exceptional produce packaging that demonstrates “out-of-the-box-thinking” and makes an impact on consumers.

Pattruss, the tetrahedral salad bag from Japan
The tetrahedral shape is well-known, particularly due to the introduction of the Tetra Pak tetrahedron, years ago. In flexible packaging it was used in the past because its truss structure is strong against crushing. With the original opening style of Pattruss, this simple bag provides innovative usefulness.

Besides protecting the contents to the point of consumption, the shape of the bag itself can be changed into a boat, functioning as a dish when it gets torn from the centre of one edge. This boat shaped opening allows easy pick-up and quick eating without preparing dishes.

The Pattruss Z (Zed) is an extra-large tetrahedral bag with zipper. The bag is designed especially for salads. It has a reclosable zipper seal to maintain freshness, for example of leaf salads. The film material is strong enough for the bag to be opened and closed many times but it can also be torn open for immediate use.

The company claims that Pattruss is comparable to rigid packages (clam shells) in terms of protecting content, but weighing less, using less material, while the freshness of the produce lasts longer due to the level of oxygen.

More fresh produce packages to come.

Tomorrow, Sunday, the 22nd of April, will be Earth Day and the internet will be overloaded with the most beautiful photos of what is left of this planet. This is all nice and dandy from an historical point of view, with the accent on historical. Yes, let’s show our children how beautiful the earth once was. Safe the beautiful photographs for the next generations. They might be the only thing they will have.

However I am more interested in what we are doing to conserve the beauty of this earth, or what is still left of it. And then of course in relation to packaging. That brought me to write an essay about the future of packaging. Read the rest of this entry »

In three articles I like to highlight the recent developments in packaging of fresh produce. Fresh produce can be seen as one of the most important commodities of the food market. And only growing in importance, as more and more consumers opt for fresh and minimally processed food.

As an example we take the Scots. Scots are purchasing more fresh fruits and vegetables than other Britons. A study shows that Scots are more likely to cook fresh foods at home, buy fresh foods and choose food because of its healthiness than those south of the border.
According to the research Scots appear to be happy to spend more of their cash on organic food, being 9% more likely to do so than those in Britain as a whole. Fruit is particularly popular with Scottish kids, with 23% of fruit being eaten because it is “a favourite,” up from 15% in 2010. Children also consumed 11 million more servings of fruit last year than they did in 2010.

But the popularity of fresh produce also has its seamy side. It has been estimated Read the rest of this entry »

In my second article about developments in pharmaceutical packaging (see my previous one about the Talking Packaging) I will show solutions for the PIL (Patient Information Leaflet). A PIL often is a dual or multi-layer leaflet, sometimes even in the form of a booklet. They consist of a single- or multi-page leaflet, which, in one way or another, must be incorporated in the pharmaceutical packaging.
They are used for applications where the printable space on the packaging is inadequate for presenting the required information.

For the pharmaceutical industry, the multi-page leaflets have been especially noticeable, as strict regulatory control has increased the need for more product information, often in multiple languages.

It’s not unusual for the published usage instructions and safety information provided with prescription and over-the-counter drugs to get lost, once in the hands of patients. A solution for this problem Read the rest of this entry »

From the packaging systems exhibited at the Anuga FoodTec 2012, running in Cologne, Germany last month, I selected three to highlight here.

Gerhard Schubert presented its new tube filling and closing machine, Robert Bosch Packaging Technology presented its new SurePOUCH clean-fill (SPC) machine, and K-Robotix showed its robots for (naked) food products. We end with an auxiliary item, namely the SmartReflect with transparent detection from Baumer.

New Tube Filling and Closing Machine
Gerhard Schubert GmbH presented its new tube filling and closing machine.

In the first sub-machine, starting on the right, tubes are Read the rest of this entry »

You might remember that in a previous article about the Talking Packaging for Healthcare products, I referred to an interview in Packaging World, where Richard Adams, head of Pack Graphic Design at GlaxoSmithKline, gave the following answer to the question, about what he is looking for from packaging suppliers: “In a word, innovation – innovative materials and packaging solutions to meet the diversification efforts within our company. ……… We simply do not have the time or resources to understand what is available and new”.

Apparently it is a problem which many (multi-national) consumer goods companies are facing. Last week Unilever launched an online open innovation platform, which is intended to be a gateway for collaborations between Unilever’s own R&D specialists and any designer, engineer or whatever to come to innovation breakthroughs.
According to Unilever, a successful solution could change the way billions of products are packaged and make a significant difference to Read the rest of this entry »

In my previous article I already mentioned the “immense” stand of 4,800 m2 Tetra Pak had at the Anuga FoodTec 2012. To justify this size Tetra Pak had not only to showcase its full range of packaging solutions and its range of dairy processing equipment, but also had to come up with a number of novelties. And they did indeed.

But before we detail the novelties, we go after the rumours. In a Financial Times interview last Monday 26th of March, Dennis Jönsson the CEO of Tetra Pak apparently, according to an interpretation of the media, suggested that Tetra Pak is all set to unveil new smart milk cartons that will change colour when left out of the fridge too long. Read the rest of this entry »

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