In This Issue

Report: downsizing trend driving U.S. rigid food packaging Packages across categories are getting smaller, and the trend toward more portable beverage and prepared-food containers will drive the increased use of plastics in rigid food packaging in the U.S. market.

Package Gallery

Measuring success on the front lines of sustainability

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Brand marketers and package designers alike seem to be looking for that "silver bullet" when they can say, "Aha! Now we're sustainable!" The truth is, developing packaging that protects both the environment and the Earth's resources for future generations—and, by the way, also provides marketing impact—is a continually evolutionary process. It's easiest and perhaps most effective when done incrementally.

In this issue, Shelf Impact!, working with the editors of Packaging World magazine, gives you ideas for moving toward sustainability with a host of new packages that are lighter and routinely include recycled content. We also feature others that have broken into new areas with truly innovative designs utilizing new and old materials in groundbreaking ways.

Method goes to PCR

San Francisco, CA-based Method Products has converted three of its U.S. product lines (nine SKUs) to 100% post-consumer-recycled (PCR) polyethylene terephthalate bottles, shedding the 100% virgin PET resin it had been using for these bottles. By converting to 100% PCR on its 28-oz bottles, Method has reduced the carbon footprint 60%.

"Because we had been successful with 100% PCR bottles in the U.K., we wanted to explore what could be done in the U.S.," explains Jason Crouch, Method's Director of Procurement. Working with Amcor PET Packaging, Method found a suitable supply source and overcame various material, production, and performance challenges. Read the entire article.

'Green' office products, at no extra charge

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OfficeMax Inc.'s office supply superstores have introduced a new line of "green" office products, such as binders, pencil cases, trash cans, and cleaners sold from integrated, end-of-aisle product displays. TerraCycle manufactures and packages products from waste and reduces the amount of garbage sent to landfills by reducing some of the country's largest waste streams. Packaging is important in the introductions. For example, the cleaning-product line includes Natural All-Purpose, Natural Window, and Natural Degreaser products filled in off-spec soda bottles. The trash cans and recycling bins are made from 100% recycled plastic, and binders are made from 100% recycled corrugated covers—derived from cartons—and 90% recycled steel rings.

Providing products priced on par with standard versions is critical to success, says TerraCycle spokesperson Albe Zakes. He asks, "If everyone can afford to buy eco-friendly products, why wouldn't they?" Read the entire article.

Albany bread presents biodegradable bags

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In South Africa, Tiger Brands recently completed the massive and complex conversion of Albany bread, its biggest brand by value, from polyethylene bags to oxo-biodegradable bags. That is significant because Albany by far has the largest share on the country's bread market. The move could remove up to 3,000 tons of waste and litter annually.

The d2w (degrade to water) technology of the bags comes from UK-based Symphony Environmental. Tiger is absorbing the nominal extra cost as part of its social responsibility efforts. "We simply have to do our bit, and considering we use some 500 million bags a year, the amount of plastic our product is sending to landfills is enormous," says Meghan Draddy, Tiger Brands Packaging Development Manager." Read the entire article.

Report: downsizing trend driving U.S. rigid food packaging

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Packages across categories are getting smaller, and the trend toward more portable beverage and prepared-food containers will drive the increased use of plastics in rigid food packaging in the U.S. market. A new report from BBC Research estimates that the use of rigid food packaging will expand by nearly 5% annually through 2013.

BBC Research notes that demographic changes such as greater numbers of single-person households and older consumers will support the demand for more convenient prepared foods and single-serve portions, sometimes in multipacks.

This trend will increase material—primarily polyethylene terephthalate—use because smaller portions tend to use more packaging relative to their size, the report states. Rigid-plastic food packaging includes bottles, dairy, deli meat containers, prepared-food trays, and a large group of containers made mostly for liquid foods.

Package Gallery A closer look at the newest trends in today's packaging. < Prev | Next > | Top ^   enlarge Labels spoof candidates, support cancer research Digital printing allows for customized packaging, giving marketers the visual impact they need for "in-season" promotional packaging to help build incremental product sales. Nowhere in package is that more evident than on the label, and hot sauce provides a platform take infuse edginess in a brand to spike sales. Dave's Gourmet Inc. is one brand marketer capitalizing on the presidential elections to provide the "spice" for labels on its glass bottles of sauce. Consumers visiting www.davesgourmet.com can cast a "Dave's Gourmet Official Presidential Ballot" for their favorite presidential candidate, and receive a 26-oz bottle of Dave's Gourmet Hot Sauce bearing a caricature of their candidate of choice on the label. Each vote cast equals one bottle sold. The company donates profits from each bottle sold to charities involved in cancer research. Poll results will be updated daily on the Web site throughout the election campaign. On one recent check, Barack Obama had 61% of the bottles sold, John McCain 26%, and Hillary Clinton 12%. < Prev | Next > | Top ^   enlarge Spray packaging triggers hunters' interest Shape and functional convenience are two key benefits that give Dead Down Wind Scent Prevent Field Spray shelf distinction and an edge at the point of use. The field spray helps deer hunters suppress or eliminate odors, such as human scent or smoke, which might deter prey from coming into their kill zone. The company's Evolve 3 Scent Prevent Field Spray is packaged in 24-oz HDPE bottles custom-designed by Tricor Braun and equipped with trigger sprayers from Calmar. The bottles incorporate a handle with a grip designed to resemble an archer's bow. The sprayer's distinctive inverted feature enables the bottle to be turned upside down without interrupting the spraying action, a point-of-use plus for hunters. The polyester, pressure-sensitive labels, from WS Packaging Group add marketing "pop" with a clear over-laminate protecting multi-color graphics with a holographic, reflective rainbow design. "The feature we liked most about this packaging is the user-convenient, inverted-spray capability that allows the product to be sprayed upside down, over and over, until the bottle is empty, without re-priming," says Dead Down Wind Product Manager Jason Falbo. < Prev | Next > | Top ^   enlarge Redesign elevates whisky brand above commodity Packaging plays a key role in authenticating a brand to win over consumer trust. The packaging components produce a sense of believability about the product's quality and brand positioning. Label 5 stakes its claim as an affordable, blended scotch whisky in France, but a package redesign moves the product beyond a commodity and into the realm of a brand through effective use of visual cues such as bottle decoration and labeling. First Blending, Co., with the assistance of Dragon Rouge, drives the brand's value through visuals such as a crest embossed just below the neck of the glass bottle. A split-label front panel bears a gold outline around the black-and-white secondary label to enhance the brand's perceived value. "These are elements of quality, infused through design," says Eric Zeitoun, Dragon Rouge President. < Prev | Top ^