Highlights of Interpack 2011 – The Fifth Day

I have to start today with a packaging which you can’t find at the Interpack, as it was launched, following earlier promises, in Lund in Sweden by Tetra Pak. As the introduction of “the packaging of the future” is too important, I had to abandon Düsseldorf, for a short visit to see Tetra Pack’s new Evero Aseptic beverage bottle.
Read also my article about the pre-view: “Want to take a sneak peak at the shape of the future?”. Here it is:

Tetra Evero Aseptic
A quick look at the new carton bottle. I will write an article in detail later, but here some information as released by Tetra Pak’s Vice President of Marketing and Product Management, Charles Brand: “Tetra Evero Aseptic is a new carton shape that delivers ease of use, high impact branding and cost effectiveness. This is a unique packaging concept that brings benefits to producers, retailers and consumers”.

Tetra Evero Aseptic is initially aimed at the ambient white milk market, including non-oxygen sensitive milk enriched with calcium, proteins, fibres (inulin), vitamins A and D and some minerals. This will soon expand to cover a wide range of beverages, including flavoured milk, cream and oxygen sensitive milk.

The first to use the Tetra Evero Aseptic is Spain’s largest dairy Corporación Alimentaria Peñasanta (CAPSA), as according to its President and CEO Pedro Astals, CAPSA chose the Tetra Evero Aseptic for its move into the value-added ambient dairy segment. And continues to say that “this package expresses evolution, a very advanced step in comparison with today’s packages. Tetra Evero Aseptic is the perfect match of a high value-added product with a highly developed package. To me this is doubtlessly a winner”.

More details and photos as well as videos in my special article about the Tetra Evero Aseptic, but you can also visit Tetra’s special website.

Ok, as we have just some days left back to the Interpack, where I continue my search for innovations. Below the result of today Monday 16th of May.

The interesting developments of Mondi
My visit of the Mondi stand took quite some time, as the company had several interesting innovations on show. Not all are brand new novelties, but interesting enough to give them a close look. Although I just select a few, this became still a bit of a long story.

Mondi’s presence at the Interpack focuses on two areas: products for the food industry, including: high-quality water-repellent Aqua paper; kraft papers with high levels of grease-resistance and convenience food packaging such as multifunctional peel coatings and an anti-staining pouch, as well as Mondi’s latest innovation in retortable packaging and the second area the Green Range solutions, which include the Terra Bag, and lightweight corrugated board made of recovered paper.

Mondi created an amazing stand. To prove that the claimed properties of its two ProVantage Aqua paperboard grades, could survive the 7 days of the Interpack, the company projected a water pond in its stand, where under the slogan ‘Set your sails – around the Mondi world in 7 days’, water lilies made from ProVantage Aqua are floating on the water. Very eye catching.

ProVantage Aqua
The used material ProVantage Kraftliner Aqua and ProVantage Fluting Aqua are partly water resistant without the paper being waxed.
ProVantage Kraftliner Aqua uses a hard sized paper for the top side, with a total composition of 75% unbleached pine pulp, 25% (+/- 5%) waste pulp. The top layer is 30% unbleached pine pulp and the bottom layer 45% unbleached pine pulp, and 25% (+/- 5%) waste.
For packaging solutions for high humidity environments and cooling chain applications, ProVantage Fluting Frigo is another grade that is compatible with demanding storage conditions. ProVantage Fluting Frigo is made from recycled fibre. This grade offers superior strength properties at 85% and 90% humidity.
Both grades have food packaging accreditation and are therefore the ideal choice for fruit and vegetables.

Terra Bag
Mondi has also the Terra Bag, world’s first biodegradable industrial bag, on show. The bag consists of a paper bag (one or more plies) with a biodegradable film for humidity protection. The entire bag is biodegradable and optimised for industrial composting. The Terra Bag is certified according to EN 13432, a harmonised European standard that defines the “Requirements for packaging recoverable through composting and biodegradation”.

The biodegradable film used for Terra Bag is partly made from corn. Joined together with sack kraft paper, also made from renewable resources and biodegradable, these components ideally complement this sustainable industrial packaging solution. The entire bag can be composted within 12 weeks in an industrial composting facility after usage.
Terra Bag was developed in close collaboration with Ciments Calcia (Italcementi Group), Barbier and Limagrain. The composting tests were carried out by Organic Waste Systems, an independent organisation.

The Zip&Valve concept
We end our visit of Mondi with an innovative consumer packaging: the Zip&Valve concept. The principle of this innovation is astonishingly easy: simply add liquid (e.g. water or milk) to the food product packed in the Zip&Valve stand-up pouch, flavour as desired and close the zipper of the pouch. Then place the pouch in the microwave and depending on the product inside, a fresh made nutritious meal is ready in only a few minutes time.
The Zip&Valve concept is based on a patented valve design, which consists of a special welding of the male zipper stripe to the inner wall of the stand-up pouch. The consistent overpressure can be predefined and adjusted according to customer needs by altering the number and size of steam valves on the pouch.

One of the major advantages of the new pouch concept is that it can easily be opened; flavours and liquid can be added to finally reclose the pouch again – ready to be cooked. The end-consumer can add seasoning and spices as desired, giving the cook the possibility to refine the meal to his or her liking. This leads us to the next important benefit – in the same way as flavour can be added, content can also be taken out of the pouch to be divided into individual portions for later consumption. In this way, the advantages of traditional cooking are brought to the faster and more convenient way of cooking in the microwave.
The Zip&Valve pouch is made of a PET/CPP construction with a PP zipper, enabling retort applications with longer shelf-life.
The Zip&Valve stand-up pouch is used for a wide range of food types, including dry products such as rice, soups, popcorn, cereals and sauces and fresh food like vegetables.

We leave Mondi and go to the next novelty.

The Split-it Green Food Tray
The Split-it Green Food Tray is the result of collaboration between UK carton company Benson Group and French packaging machinery company, Mecapack. The Split-it is said to be the environmentally friendly and efficient alternative to polymers and, ultimately, the C-pet ready-meal tray.
The Split-it consists of a board skillet which can be lined at the point of packing with a thin film. This forms the sealing flange, providing an air tight seal. The finished packaging is easy to open but also easy to recycle, with the consumer able to “split-it”, in other words separating the film from the board with one swift pull. The board packaging is recycled as easily as all other paperboard products.

The board substrate and lining film can be selected according to the desired application. The Split-it tray is suited to a wide range of food applications, but the development was particularly created with ready meals and chilled product in mind.
Ready meals require the creation of a packaging utilising an oven-able board and PET lining film, whilst chilled short shelf life products could be created from FBB and a film dependant on product life.

Controlled tests conducted by the independent Eco3 laboratories in Ashby-de-la-Zouch,  calculated a saving of 0.054 kg of CO2 per unit when making a direct comparison between the components of Split-it and existing polypropylene ready-meal trays.

I haven’t much time left for more visits on this Monday, as the day is coming to an end, so the rest is for tomorrow.