Industries: Page 681

Beverage

EU blocks Tetra Laval's takeover bid for Sidel

The European Commission of the 15-nation European Union in late October blocked a $1.53 billion bid by Lausanne, Switzerland-based beverage carton maker Tetra Laval SA to take over packaging equipment manufacturer Sidel SA, Le Havre Cedex, France.

October 31, 2001

Bakery/Snack

Bonds a hit with Wheaties

As announced October 17 by General Mills, Minneapolis, MN, San Francisco Giants' slugger Barry Bonds will be honored with a special Wheaties box to be introduced nationally by around the end of October. "This is a great way to end the season–with a victory, another home run, and now my own Wheaties box," says Bonds. "What more could you ask for?"

October 31, 2001

Coding, Printing & Labeling

Holding it together

USDA has issued a final rule requiring labeling of natural sausage casings if they are derived from a different type of meat or poultry than the sausage.

October 31, 2001

Coding, Printing & Labeling

Non-GE labels misleading, says CSPI

The Center for Science in the Public Interest has called on FDA to take action against seven food manufacturers for making false and misleading label claims related to the absence of genetically engineered ingredients.

October 31, 2001

Closures

Abita tests pasteurizable beer in PET

Abita Brewery next year plans to commercialize beer in a one-way multilayer plastic bottle that’s pasteurizable. Until now, the plastic bottles typically used for beer didn’t have sufficient thermal resistance to withstand pasteurization, so brewers choosing to use plastic have had to rely on some form of cold filtering or flash pasteurization. But the availability of this new tunnel-pasteurizable bottle could make one-way plastic beer bottles a viable option for a lot more brewers. Abita Brewery, based in Abita Springs, LA, is a regional craft brewer.

October 31, 2001

Labels

'Tis the season for apple gum pack

Just in time for the fall season is Amurol Confections’ Caramel Apple Bubble Gum, packaged in a reusable apple-shaped polypropylene cup and a removable acrylonitrile-butadiene-styrene lid. A polyvinyl chloride heat-shrink label conforms to the shape of the container, delivering graphics via a modified flexo press.

October 31, 2001

Beverage

Energy drink rockets to retail

In September, Ferolito Vultaggio & Sons, Lake Success, NY, “launched” its AriZona Rx Extreme Energy Shot drink in a package that resembles a rocket. The drink uses an 8-oz aluminum can topped with a polypropylene cap that doubles as a “shot cup.” According to Ferolito Vultaggio & Sons, creators of the AriZona Beverage brand, the “shot cup” provides an industry-first sanitary cap.

October 31, 2001

Beverage

Europe grows can shipments

Shipments of beverages in cans in Europe for the first half of 2001 showed 5% growth compared with a year earlier, according to Beverage Can Makers Europe.

October 31, 2001

Beverage

PET bottles unite Union's flavored vodka line

In July, Chicago-based Union Beverage Co. introduced a line of six flavored 80-proof vodkas in polyethylene terephthalate bottles. The new line also represents Union’s first use of plastic. Previously, Union used only glass bottles.

October 31, 2001

Converting equipment

Coke 'endorses' new mold-making technology

The Coca-Cola Co., Atlanta, GA, has endorsed new technology for making tooling for injection and blow-molding equipment. The process is patented by Metallamics (Traverse City, MI) and improves the cycle times of, in this case, molding of preforms and plastic soft drink bottles.

October 31, 2001

Digital Transformation

Is e-commerce at a halt?

Last year, packaging professionals were hit so hard with e-commerce hype that many probably felt that if they didn’t rush out and invest in the latest Internet solutions, their businesses might crumble.

October 31, 2001

Consumer packaged goods

Domestic acquisitions, agreements

Basell (Houston, TX) and ExxonMobil Chemical (Houston, TX) have signed a research and development agreement to accelerate metallocene polypropylene technology.

October 31, 2001