Contract Packaging

Rhapsody in blue

Rochester, NY-based Global Beverage's striking cobalt blue-tinted polyethylene terephthalate container is credited with firing up sales of its Bl Botol brand spring water since it debuted about 10 months ago.

April 30, 1997

Business Drivers/Specialty: Page 578

Sustainability

Turning the shoe industry on end

Italian shoemaker challenges packaging conventions by adopting a vertical gable-top package that resembles both a doctor's bag and a milk carton. Patented carton design offers environmental advantages in waste-conscious Europe.

April 30, 1997

Sustainability

Setting up shop

Merck, Revlon and Clorox developed unique packaging technology for their own use. Now those developments are generating revenue through licensing to other firms.

March 31, 1997

Protective/transport packaging

Distribution packaging by the numbers

Using real-world shock and vibration data to design your pack can speed development, prevent damage and economize on materials. Collecting such data isn't easy, but now new ideas for sharing the burden-with the help of the Internet-are taking root in the

March 31, 1997

Bag/pouch fill/seal (pre-made bags)

Machine technology that slashes changeover

In this second report from our survey of changeover trends, readers describe how new equipment technology like control programming and tool-free adjustments helps them attack downtime.

March 31, 1997

Sustainable Packaging

Life-cycle analysis gains political cachet

The President's Council on Sustainable Development (PCSD), having received a new lease on life, will be pushing ahead with its efforts to proselytize on behalf of "Extended Product Responsibility (EPR)," a concept that has numerous implications for users of packaging.

March 31, 1997

Coding, Printing & Labeling

Avoiding eco-seals

Coming up with international eco-labeling standards that don't impede U.S. packagers is important, according to Karil Kochenderfer, director of environmental affairs for the Grocery Manufacturers of America (GMA), testifying before Congress in late February.

March 31, 1997

Flexibles

Kellogg tests stand-up pouch for new cereal

Cereal manufacturers are sure to be keeping an eye on the stand-up pouch with zipper reclosure used by Kellogg Canada for a test of Hot Krumbly instant hot cereal.

March 31, 1997

Protective/transport packaging

Beaulieu tries starch-based cushioning

A 97-year-old Napa Valley winery is embracing today's latest environmentally-sound technology to protect wine bottles it ships in pairs across the country via small-parcel carriers as part of its wine society program.

March 31, 1997

Sustainable Packaging

Designers pick top ten

What will be hot in '97?

February 28, 1997

Flexible packaging

Foods fit fine in flexibles

Half of the 12 winners in this year's FPA awards competition for excellence in flexible packaging are food packages. A broad range of food categories are represented.

February 28, 1997

Flexibles

EPA tries to color converters 'green'

Pricing and performance of flexible packaging could be affected by EPA's new regulatory programs and by voluntary changes, too.

February 28, 1997

Sustainable Packaging

More mandates?

A downturn in plastics recycling markets could signal trouble for packagers. Some companies have stopped buying recycled plastics, inhibiting an already underdeveloped plastics recycling infrastructure.

February 28, 1997