A custom glass jar is one of three Gold Award winners in the recent German Packaging Awards competition, which is sponsored by the German Packaging Institute.
GLÜCK—the German word for “happiness”—is the name of a new range of fruit spreads from the Friedrich Göbber Co., which is based in Eystrup, Germany. That firm approached the Ardagh Group in nearby Nienburg and asked for a jar that reflected the product’s name. Ardagh’s team carried out all the design and development work in-house, creating several different concepts in response to the initial brief. The designs were developed through many different iterations, in close collaboration with Göbber, and Ardagh’s designers applied their technical and creative expertise at every stage.
Topped by a threaded meatal closure, this jar has an unusual convex design, a large opening, and what Ardagh describes as an “extra-thick base.” The jar stands 8 cm (3.15 in) tall and has a neck finish diameter of 8.5 cm (3.35 in) with a bottom diameter of 4.5 cm (1.77 in). The preserve maker also opted for a design feature that gives the jar a distinctive on-shelf appearance by dispensing with a label and printing straight onto the glass. Neither Göbber nor Ardagh are saying anything specific about how this printing is done. Presumably, the same method of printing is used for the ingredient information and bar code that appear on the back of the jar.
“We knew that the Ardagh Group in Nienburg was an experienced, competent, and creative glass packaging partner, but we genuinely weren’t expecting our jar to win the famous German Packaging Award,” says Marc Ebbert, Purchasing Director at Göbber.
The brief was to design a preserve jar that emphasized the special qualities of the fruit spreads, stood out on the supermarket shelves, was easy to handle, and could be sustainably and cost-effectively manufactured as a standardized product. The Ardagh team in Nienburg was happy to take on that challenge because it allowed them to demonstrate their technical expertise and creativity.
“The GLÜCK fruit spreads deliver a ‘pure flavor’ experience to the consumer. When we discussed the design with Göbber, we soon realized that the glass packaging had to embody the purity, naturalness, and uniqueness of the fruit spreads” says Gerd Zurawsky, Senior Sales Manager, Food, at the Ardagh plant in Nienburg.
Eight different flavours of the premium GLÜCK fruit spreads have been on the supermarket shelves since February 2017, and the 230-g jars sell for about $3.00 each.
“The German Packaging Institute presents its award as a tribute to manufacturers for innovative products that benefit both consumers and the environment, and we are fully committed to those objectives and values,” explains Jens Schaefer, Managing Director of the Ardagh Group in Germany. “Glass is one of the greenest packaging materials in the market and sustainability is a fundamental aspect of the partnership between the Ardagh Group and Göbber. Our Nienburg facility and the Göbber Co. are just 12 miles apart, so the delivery distance is short and transport-related CO2 emissions are low. This regional focus has a positive impact on our sustainability performance, and another benefit of this close and innovative collaboration between the two neighbours is that it boosts the regional economy and safeguards jobs.”
The German Packaging Institute had this to say: “The packaging communicates exclusivity and lifestyle. Its quality, plus the combination of a pure fruit product in pure glass with purist design, are the reasons for the jury’s choice.”
