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Tray Sealer Brings Benefits to Berry Packaging

By eliminating a rigid, domed, snap-fit lid in favor of a clear flexible film applied by a new tray sealer, this German berry grower scores sustainability points and more.

The double-lane tray sealer provides flexibility for medium-sized outputs, yet it’s capable of reliably sealing up to 140 trays/min.
The double-lane tray sealer provides flexibility for medium-sized outputs, yet it’s capable of reliably sealing up to 140 trays/min.

Baumann Vertriebs GmbH & Co. specializes in growing blackberries, raspberries, and blueberries. As consumption of fresh berries has increased in recent years, the firm has enjoyed steady growth. So about two years ago, management began re-evaluating its approach to packaging—specifically the amount of plastic involved.

At the time, the company, located just east of Munich, delivered its berries in plastic trays that were manually fitted with a snap-on lid. The entire production was tuned and optimized to this process, so naturally the company was reluctant to changing things up. But retailers made it clear that a change would indeed be necessary.

“Starting this season, we have been packaging our berries in plastic trays made from resource-saving rPET,” says CEO Annika Baumann. “The trays are sealed with a top film in a fully automated manner. The implementation of this brand-new packaging system has significantly changed our process and brought a number of advantages, some of them unexpected.”The double-lane tray sealer provides flexibility for medium-sized outputs, yet it’s capable of reliably sealing up to 140 trays/min.The double-lane tray sealer provides flexibility for medium-sized outputs, yet it’s capable of reliably sealing up to 140 trays/min.

When it came time to install the tray sealing equipment it needed for its berry operation, Baumann relied on an existing relationship it had from some years back when it had worked on tray packing asparagus with Sealpac GmbH. In short order, a request was submitted for an additional traysealer to package berries. Using Sealpac’s expertise, especially in understanding the market and available materials, Baumann decided to purchase a medium-output SEALPAC A6 traysealer.

Baumann was strongly supported by Sealpac in its transition to tray sealing. Important questions were answered together. Should we start with the equipment, the tray, or the film? Is a protective gas mixture required? Should the packaging be reclosable? What additional equipment is required for weighing and labelling? The two companies even travelled together to the Fruit Logistica exhibition in Berlin to get an overview of the various options in terms of materials. This is what led them to the rPET tray, produced from collected, cleaned, and shredded PET.

One of the special features of the new process is that the trays are filled with berries in the field. After arriving at the production facility, the trays are brought to their correct weight by means of a multi-head weighing system from Krebeck. After the weighing process, the trays are fed on a double-lane conveyor into the SEALPAC A6 traysealer. The A6 reacts flexibly to the in-feed, as it cannot be guaranteed that the exact number of trays is always arriving on both lanes at the same time. This is why the lanes work independently, to ensure that all trays are reliably sealed.

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