Steuben Foods’ distinctive pack helps launch alt-milk beverage

The company’s Elmhurst-brand premium nut-based beverages are reportedly the first in the U.S. to use this ‘low acid carton bottle.'

Pw 197488 Combidome Low Acid Pouring Rgb 3

Steuben Foods specializes in long shelf-life products, which now includes a new line of Elmhurst-brand premium nut-based beverages—milked almonds, milked cashews, milked walnuts, and milked hazelnuts. The 32-oz varieties are said to represent the first U.S. use of the combidome “low acid carton bottle” from SIG Combibloc.

This carton-bottle is distinctive and differentiating. Although the carton’s primarily rectangular shape is not unusual, the cartons taper inward from all four sides at the shoulder level, forming a flat top upon which is a centrally positioned dome Twist screw cap with 28-mm inner closure diameter. This tamper-evident closure at the very top of the package makes it easy to pour and drink from, much like a bottle.

The combidome carton is composed of about 75% raw paperboard, along with polymers, to provide product stability. Inner polymer layers form a liquid barrier for the beverage, while the outer layer keeps moisture out. A thin aluminum layer protects the product from light, oxygen, and external odors. This means nutrients and vitamins in the aseptically filled beverages are retained for a long time, with no preservatives. These barrier benefits, SIG says, provide the advantages of an aseptic carton.

The cartons are printed in a combination of six colors, depending on product variety. Further distinction is provided by a creamy white color that extends vertically from the carton base upward to the white closure. The slim, rectangular-shaped containers taper inward at the shoulder level. The white background allows the printed graphics of the different nut varieties on the main carton panel to stand out at retail.

Shelf life for the alt-milk varieties is six months, with refrigeration unnecessary as long as the carton pack is left unopened. After the pack is opened, the company says product should be enjoyed within seven to 10 days.

The products were first presented to the public at the Natural Products Expo West in California in March. The carton bottle is available at 1,100 Publix stores. Suggested retail prices are $4.99 for the almond and walnut versions; $5.99 for the hazelnut and cashew varieties.

Steuben Foods touts the lactose-free, vegan alternative to dairy beverages for consumption straight from the glass, in coffee, in smoothies and over cereal.

Jeff Sokal, Steuben Foods’ Senior Vice-President Business Development, says: "With our new milked nut beverages we’re presenting products that are unique in this segment. The creaminess of the beverages comes exclusively from a proprietary cold-milling process that ensures you get all the valuable nutrients and the full flavor of the whole nuts. Compared to other nut beverages, our products are like homemade—with absolutely no emulsifiers and no thickeners. The aseptic process ensures that all harmful germs were eliminated, while simultaneously allowing us to capture and stabilize the freshness and quality of our nut milks longer than anyone else. When you drink a glass of our beverage, you can be sure you’re getting the nutrition of [the] ingredient; it’s as if you were eating a handful of nuts.”

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