Cool operators

22 December 2011



New packaging solutions for chilled and frozen food are being developed to attract a warm response from even the coolest of customers, reports Sam Cole


Let’s face it: neither the chill cabinet nor the frozen food aisle are somewhere you’d choose to hang around too long during the weekly supermarket shop; especially so at this time of the year, when even the laundry product shelves seem a far more inviting spot in which to park the trolley.

In often quite subtle ways, however, what are mostly either convenience or commodity items that characterise these linked categories are undergoing something of a makeover – not least in the chilled section through the application of a more creatively artistic touch, practical functionality, or else a healthy demonstration of eco-responsibility.

Proving the point that some of the best ideas are often the simplest, Sainsbury’s has modified the Elopak carton used for its own-label chilled juice range by incorporating a vertical ladder of 23mm diameter circular ‘windows’ running down one side of the pack to denote a 200ml glassful, equating to one of the recommended five portions of fruit or vegetables a day.

With only the front-face initially visible to the shopper, it’s not until the carton is to hand that the measuring guide becomes apparent – deliberately so, and in no way counter-intuitive, says head of packaging Stuart Lendrum.

“One approach might have been to re-design the whole pack around it, but we’re more focused upon clear messaging on-pack and not too much noise up-front,” he explains. “The consumer is initially drawn to the product by great photography; once they’re at that purchase moment, suddenly there’s this added benefit that says this is far more than just an ordinary pack.

“We’re really pleased with how it’s been received, both by customers and the wider industry.

“It’s very easy in some category areas to think well that’s the format and so forever it may be, but we’re constantly challenging ourselves to always move our product up a rung. Innovation could be materials; it could be that you’re applying another format to the category that’s worked elsewhere in the store,” he says.

Looking good enough to eat

Also hidden from view is the technology underpinning the 8-colour re-design of Asda’s own-label ‘big pot’ fruited yoghurt range, which has led the rest of Europe in being the first packaging adopting the innovative dry-offset print technology with the graphics laid down over a white ‘preprint’ panel directly onto the clear PP pot.

Produced by Northern Ireland-based Greiner Packaging and hitherto not considered to be possible with the dryoffset process, the laying down of an in-line white pre-print panel meant that the graphics were now printed over an opaque base layer, minimising the problem of ‘product show-through’ and allowing greater freedom in the choice and application of colour.

The dry-offset technology also resulted in a 10-20% weight reduction, while at the same time offering a 30-40% cost saving without compromising overall quality perception.

Brains and beauty

There’s a more obvious combination of brains and beauty operating in tandem on behalf of the same UK retailer’s Fresh Taste microwavable ready meals with products such as Thai Style Noodles and Piri Piri Chicken packed in 6-colour flexo printed stand-up high clarity PE/PP laminated pouches, micro-perforated to allow the fresh ingredients to respire without causing product degradation and so resulting in a higher quality of shelf life.

Adding further consumer convenience, the pouch also features an easy-tear laser score that can be torn by hand before serving the meal onto a plate – and weighing in at just 8g/m² is claimed to be 60% lighter than a conventional ready meal tray and sleeve pack.

Sustenance and sustainability

In switching its category-leading Activia yoghurt from polystyrene to PLA last April, Danone in Germany may have laid down a significant marker along the route to conversion towards the broader adoption of a bio-based alternative to oil-derived plastics packaging – although one thing it probably won’t be able to replicate is the characteristic sound that a PS snap-pot makes, and which has played a highly audible role in popularising the application.

While to all intents and purposes Activia appears on the shelf outwardly unaltered, Danone is claiming that the new format has led to a 25% reduction in greenhouse gases and almost a halving of its dependence upon fossil-based resources. Having already discarded the aluminium lid, next step will be to produce it from paper PET.

Ironically, a green activist group subsequently accused Danone of seeking to deceive consumers in claiming its PLA-based solution to be ‘environmentally friendly’ – the net result being a planned amendment to focus upon climate-change via the on-pack messaging. In the meantime, however, everyone throughout the supply chain believes that bioplastics represent the way forward.

Environmental issues

“The original issues from a cost, performance and recycling point of view still exist,” says Andrew Copson, MD of Sharpak Yate, Bridgwater and Nederland, a leading UK supplier of thermoformed rigid plastics packaging for food applications. “Availability is another factor, plus what is the environmental impact of using agricultural land for plastics rather than food?

“We are seeing the chemistry move forward in biodegradables, however, and there have been some interesting developments through the commercialisation of green PE from sugar-cane in Brazil.”

While currently taking part in an ongoing joint industry/university research study group to assess ‘novel polymers for future market requirements’, Sharpak and Copson remain firmly committed to the use of recycled material wherever possible (about one-third of annual output) and natural mineral additives. “We’re interested in having recycled content because it’s the right thing to do for our industry to support what our customers want. “The limitation isn’t a capability of using the material but its availability in good quality and quantity; demand is still outstripping supply. We’re sourcing from both mainland Europe and the UK – where there is some growth, albeit from a low base – and would use more if we could get hold of it.

“I’ve been pleased to see the retailers moving away from specifying percentages of recycled content, however, and having a more balanced discussion about providing sustainable levels of recycled content instead. I think there is a danger of distorting the market for raw materials if we drive for greater and greater proportions of recyclate.,” says Copson.

Sharpak has recently extended its c-LOW blend of natural mineral, recyclate and virgin PP used for mushrooms over the past two years to provide low-carbon thermoformed trays for its protein range including meat, fish and sausage products. “Whereas in Courtauld1 the focus was on weight reduction, in phase 2 where packaging is recognised to be part of the solution rather than being the problem, it’s more about carbon footprint.

“If you can use non-oil based minerals to replace oil-based polymers you reduce the carbon footprint of the product; the arithmetic just works.”

While strongly in favour of finding a sustainable solution, Stuart Lendrum raises one small caveat. “There is a tint with rPET, and if we switched our chilled fresh orange juice back into bottles made of virgin material, it would look slightly brighter and nicer. But we believe that consumers wouldn’t register the difference.”

Equipped for action

Whether virgin or recycled, film applications are gaining increased market share within the chilled category, mostly at the expense of cartonboard. UK converter National Flexible has recently partnered with SIB Technology to commercialise the Flexowrap system – claimed to be the world’s first inline automated flexible film sleeving alternative to the industry standard cartonboard over-wrap for chilled and frozen ready meals and fresh meat.

Whereas C-wrap or linerless labelling solutions are habitually limited to a surface width of 80mm, Flexowrap can cover a filled and lidded tray in its entirety and still weigh less than one-tenth of its card equivalent, claims National Flexible marketing manager Andy Smith. “While the system will accept any grade of film down to a 20 micron thickness, we would atypically use PP as it’s a relatively low cost high performer. It presents an ideal opportunity for some of the major brand names to demonstrate their Courtauld Commitment intent to make packaging reductions a reality.”

Flexowrap’s capability for on-pack manipulation will clearly further encourage greater interaction between product and consumer, and could help to enliven the frozen category, where the main focus is further back along the supply chain.

Recently installed at The Big Prawn Company, Proseal’s servo-driven GT1 tray sealer combined with an OC conveyor and integrated with a multihead weigher is now sealing six different types of trays and pots, with gas flushing for extended shelf life.

Ensuring content weight accuracy is another critical behind the scenes operation within the frozen category – for example, Ishida’s 4-mix multihead R Series system processing 10 different frozen fruits as individual products down to a tolerance of less than 1.5g/m² on a 500g/m² pack in line with a filling rate of 35 units/min at the Libertas plant in Serbia.

While none of this innovation is visible to the supermarket shopper, the category has outwardly undergone a degree of rejuvenation, says Stuart Lendrum. “While this might have been a comparatively neglected area a few years ago, there has been a renaissance led by brands and ownlabel. For example, shelf-ready packaging is used for some of the premium ice creams now. The challenge is that you want to deliver products that look fresh and tasty, but you’ve got to punch out through a glass door to do so.


Danone’s Activia yoghurt in the biopolymer PLA carton Activia C-LOW low carbon footprint tray solution for fish and poultry C-LOW National Flexible’s Flexowrap film alternative to cartonboard sleeving Flexowrap Proseal’s GT1 tray sealer installed at The Big Prawn Company Proseal Ishida’s R Series multihead weighing solution for frozen fruit pre-packed at Libertas, Serbia Ishida

Proseal Proseal
Flexowrap Flexowrap
C-LOW C-LOW
Activia Activia
Ishida Ishida


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