NEW EVENT! Cutting-edge Trends for Every Industry at PACK EXPO Southeast
Discover packaging & processing solutions for all industries at the all-new PACK EXPO Southeast in Atlanta, GA, March 10-12, 2025
LAST CHANCE! Register ASAP for $30

Diners find film packs ideal for every meal course

From soups and salads to poultry, foods of all types become winners at the market—and in the 2000 Flexible Packaging Assn. competition.

1
1

Now called the Flexible Packaging Achievement Awards, the annual competition of the Flexible Packaging Assn. (Linthicum, MD) rewards converters and packagers across a broader range of achievements than ever before. Although more than just food packages were selected for awards, a variety of food product packages secured the majority of them.

Formerly called the Top Packaging Awards, the revised competition issues awards for Packaging Excellence, Technical Innovation, Environmental Achievement and also for Printing Achievement. One package, for Tyson’s Cornish Hens, won a Silver Award for Packaging Excellence and a Gold for printing. The awards were presented during FPA’s annual convention, March 1, in Naples, FL. Judges were Professor Larry Gay of California Polytechnic State University, Art Friedman of the Converters Consulting Network, and Arnie Orloski, editor, Packaging World.

Because 16 different packages won awards, this report will cover those food packages that won for Packaging Excellence. Other food packages that won Technical or Printing awards are covered on p. 41. In addition, six nonfood packages were also selected, as reported in a third FPA awards story on p. 45.

The Highest Achievement Award went to Alcan-Lawson Mardon North America (Northbrook, IL) for a refrigerated soup pouch (1) marketed by United Signature Foods, Northbrook, IL. United packs the soup into 20-oz stand-up pouches under its Kettle Rich brand, and for Jewel Food Stores’ Chef’s Kitchen label, at its Indianapolis and Newark, CA, production facilities. A 40-oz Kettle Rich stand-up pouch is also packed for Sam’s Club warehouse stores.

The pouch is a 5.5-mil construction of polyester/ethylene vinyl alcohol/coextruded sealant that’s now fabricated by Alcan-Lawson Mardon into a straight-sided pouch. The material is printed in eight colors via flexo, with clear windows front and back so the consumer can see the product. Originally, says Mercer Miller, general manager of USF’s soup division, the Chef’s Kitchen pouch was introduced in Oct. ’99, in a tapered, bottle-shaped pouch from a different vendor.

“That was really kind of a test market for us to determine if we really wanted to invest the kind of money we’d need to go into full production on the product and package. We got a ‘soup season’ under our belt with Jewel and it was a big success,” Miller says. “The test was concluded last summer, and we [made the investments] to add production and also to produce our own brand, Kettle Rich.” Alcan-Lawson Mardon has supplied the straight-sided trapezoidal-shaped pouch for several months, Miller adds.

What led USF into refrigerated soups was that product’s success in Europe over the last 15 years. “That’s because a chilled soup can deliver a product with bigger particulates and fresher taste than a soup in cans,” Miller says. And even though shopping patterns are different in Europe, he says the market drivers of convenience, freshness, and ready-to-heat products are the same in the United States. Plus, he adds, the U.S. consumer is always looking for newer tastes and varieties.

Consumer convenience is supplied by a reclosable zipper and the ease of disposal that’s common to flexible materials.

Miller was reluctant to discuss USF’s packaging process, other than to say the soups are hot-filled and the process has a patent application pending. The soups are offered in several varieties and retail for $2.99 to $3.29 for the 20-oz pouches.

Kraft adds convenience

New e-book on Flexible Packaging
In this e-book, you’ll learn key considerations for vertical and horizontal f/f/s and how to choose between premade bags and an f/f/s system. Plus, discover the pitfalls to avoid on bagging machinery projects.
download
New e-book on Flexible Packaging
INTRODUCING! The Latest Trends for All Industries at PACK EXPO Southeast
The exciting new PACK EXPO Southeast 2025 unites all vertical markets in one dynamic hub, generating more innovative answers to your production challenges. Don’t miss this extraordinary opportunity for your business!
REGISTER FOR $30!
INTRODUCING! The Latest Trends for All Industries at PACK EXPO Southeast