At the show, 3M touted a new manufacturing process for its 3M Scotch Box Sealing Tapes that is 99% free of VOCs, resulting in the equivalent of total avoided greenhouse gas emissions (GHGs) of approximately 100 million tons of CO2 per year. Since 1975, 3M has manufactured the adhesive side of the Box Sealing tape without solvents. Now, the release coating—or the non-sticky side that allows tape to smoothly unwind without tearing—is also being manufactured without the addition of VOCs. Says 3M, the new solventless production process, employed at its Greenville, SC, plant, does not affect the quality or performance of the tape, which will be sold at the same price as 3M’s previous offering.
At the Amcor Rigid Plastics booth, the company introduced two additions to existing product lines that offer lighter-weight packaging alternatives for products traditionally found in glass. The first, the APEX 82, adds an 82-mm-dia/16-oz jar size to Amcor’s APEX line. Introduced in 2014 in a 63-mm-dia/24-oz size, APEX is a blow-and-trim hot-fill PET container that can be fitted with a metal lug closure. Jocelyn Cory, Vice President of Marketing for Amcor Rigid Plastics’ Diversified Products Division, said that visitors to the Amcor booth were quite impressed with the light weight and ease of opening of the APEX jar. She added that the environmental benefits of the APEX 63 jar include a weight of 53 g versus 280 g for glass and a 15% reduction in the number of truckloads required for the PET jar compared with a glass jar. Currently, she added, the APEX 82 is in trials with a salsa product; Amcor expects to introduce a larger-size jar to the market by the end of 2015.
The other introduction drawing the attention of attendees at the Amcor booth was the first major commercial application of its 750-mL PET wine bottle—a container so rigid and crystal clear that it’s not until you pick it up that you realize it isn’t glass. Since 2011, Amcor has offered PET bottles as an alternative to glass for wine; the first introduction in early 2011 was a single-serve 187-mL size, followed by a 1-L bottle in mid-2011, and 1.75-L and 750-mL sizes in 2013. At PACK EXPO Las Vegas, the company displayed Ceres, CA-based Bronco Wine Co.’s Green Fin and Hacienda brands in the 750-mL size. Amcor’s Cory related that (at the time of the show), Green Fin in PET was being field-tested in Trader Joe’s retail stores throughout the U.S., while Hacienda was just being introduced to airlines for first class customer service. She adds that Bronco considered the switch from glass to PET because of PET’s sustainability, light weight, shatter-resistance, and potential use in new venues. For Bronco’s airline customers, the bottle results in reduced fuel consumption and allows the flight attendant to reclose the bottle for multiple servings.
The 750-mL PET bottle, like its smaller-sized predecessors, uses KHS Plasmax GmbH’s KHS Plasmax silicon oxide (SiOx) barrier coating to protect the contents from oxidation. During the recycling process, the barrier coating can be easily removed and does not contaminate the recycling stream. In the case of Bronco, a paper label is being used, making the bottle 100% recyclable.
Among the other sustainable advantages of the 750-mL PET bottle—according to figures provided by Amcor—it is one-sixth the weight of glass, reduces GHGs by 47%, cuts water use by 90%, lowers energy use by 43%, and reduces solid waste by 62%.
Not to be outdone by rigid packaging, ConservaCube LLC showcased its own more eco-friendly package: the cube-shaped ConservaCube flexible pouch for dry, free-flowing heavyweight products, designed as an alternative to bags, pouches, and bag-in-box packages. The pouch is typically made from a 4- or 5-mil recyclable polyethylene film and is constructed with a trademarked design comprised of an internal baffle system that, when filled, allows the package to stand up. According to company Vice President Rick Sullivan, customers—among them producers of food and ingredients for retail and foodservice, as well as those manufacturing products for the pet, lawn and garden, household, chemical, and other industries—can stack the ConservaCube three to five packs high on a pallet, with no exterior, secondary support required. Given its cubic footprint, the pouch is said to maximize pallet load efficiencies, and reduce freight and warehousing costs, as well as maximize shelf space and reduce restocking at retail.
The company also offers the FlexiPAIL, a similar pouch construction intended to replace rigid packaging. Both pouch designs can handle weights up to 55 lb and are available in sizes from a 6-in. cube to 12 x 13 x 17.5 in. At the show, the company also introduced a new press-to-close zipper option for the pouches, which are also constructed with built-in handles that allow consumers to easily lift and carry the package. The PE film can be flexo-printed in up to 10 colors on all four panels, for maximum shelf impact, especially in club-store environments. –Anne Marie Mohan
