Nanotech food packaging success depends on proof of ENM safety – PEN/GMA study

“The benefits of using nanomaterials in the next generation of food packaging are nothing short of amazing, but we have to make sure these materials will not pose any harm down the line,” says David Rejeski, director of the Project on Emerging Nanotechnologies (PEN) of the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars, which collaborated with the Grocery Manufacturers Association (GMA) on a landmark study on the issue.

“The new science of nanotechnology,” notes the introduction of the report on the study, “has potential applications throughout the U.S. economy, including the creation of food-packaging materials with new functional properties that can better protect the quality and safety of food.” But, warns the author of the report, Michael R. Taylor, research professor of health policy at George Washington University, “companies developing engineered nanoscale materials (ENMs) for use in packaging will need to work closely with the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to make sure the questions…concerning potential risks are answered.”

The 100 page report – Assuring the Safety of Nanomaterials in Food Packaging: The Regulatory Process and Key Issues – identifies potential regulatory hurdles for nanotech-based packaging and discusses three hypothetical case studies:

• nanosanitizer that prevents contamination of packaging film;
• film that detects, quantifies pathogens in product;
• barrier packaging for carbonated beverages.

“The novel properties that make engineered nanoscale materials beneficial for food packaging may also raise safety questions different from those raised by conventional scale versions of the same materials,” note David Rejeski, PEN Director and Dr. Bob Brackett, Senior Vice President and Chief Science and Regulatory Affairs Officer of the GMA, in their preface to the report. “Companies developing engineered nanoscale materials for use in food packaging need to consider the state of the science and technology to better understand the behavior and properties of materials at the nanoscale. In addition, regulatory agencies like FDA, EPA and the USDA need an overview of what products are heading towards commercialization, how nanotechnologies are used in these products, and what unique scientific questions may be raised by these uses.”

Success of nanotech packaging, notes Taylor, also depends on the ability of developers to convince consumers of its safety and benefits.

Follow-up: Download a PDF of the complete PEN/GMA report at: www.nanotechproject.org/publications/archive/nano_food_packaging/.

Pouch pack dispenses with hard-to-use caulk guns, tubes

Vertically scored E-flute “bellows” attached to back helps user squeeze 1.25-ounce GE Caulk Singles pouch to deliver smooth bead of caulk without clumsy caulk guns, hard-to-handle tubes. Diecut notches on top tab of stand-up pouch ensure clean tear at reinforced “tip” for one-handed delivery of perfect bead. Barrier laminate converted by Technipaq Inc., Crystal Lake, IL, printed flexographically in three colors, includes both foil and unidentified barrier layer. Multilayer structure protects caulk from air, moisture to provide standard 18-month shelf life, yet imparts flexibility pouch needs to compress for even dispensing. Single-use size along with complete evacuation minimizes waste. In project that began late in 2005, Momentive Performance Materials, Huntersville, NC, an exclusive licensee of General Electric, works with IDEO, Palo Alto, CA, to conduct behavioral research to identify needs of frequent, infrequent caulk users. After pinpointing desire for ease of use, viability after storage, IDEO used rapid prototyping to present different packaging options. It then refined final design, helped prepare it for manufacturing. New Century Packaging, Tinley Park, IL, produces preformed pouches, adds extra strip of high-density polyethylene to tab area to add rigidity to “dispensing tip.” New Century also fills pouches on new dedicated line which consists of Bartelt forming/cutting equipment from KHS, Sarasota, FL, filler from Prosys Innovative Packaging Equipment, Webb City, MO. E-flute backing from TimBar Packaging & Display, Hanover, PA, carries booklet label from Macaran Printed Products, Cohoes, NY. Operators hand-apply E-flute/label combination to sealed pouches, then manually load cases. However, plans call for automated case packing. GE Caulk Singles in white paintable acrylic or white or clear waterproof silicone currently sell singly in home improvement, hardware stores for about $2.50 each, will eventually be available in multipacks. “We’re studying usage information from consumers and point-of-sale data from retailers to determine the configuration of the multipacks,” reports Anita Mooy, director of Marketing for GE Caulk Singles. Follow-up: At Technipaq, Marketing Department, +1 815-477-1800, info@technipaq.com; Link: www.technipaq.com; at IDEO, John Ravitch, new business, +1 415-615-5054, jravitch@ideo.com; Link: www.ideo.com; at New Century, Marketing Department, +1 708-342-1839, info@newcenturypackaging.net; Link: www.newcenturypackaging.com; at KHS, Rick Manning, +1 941-359-4090, rick.manning@khs.com; Link: www.khs.com/us/website.php; at ProSys, Marketing Department, +1 417-673-5551, info@prosysfill.com; Link: www.prosysfill.com; at Timbar, Marketing Department, +1 717-632-4727; Link: www.timbar.com; at Macaran, Customer Service, +1 518-237-1436, custservice@macaran.com; Link: www.macaran.com.

Closure, shipper distinguish blended wines

Stopper-like T-top ZORK closure eliminates need for cork screw on Muse Genie white wine blend, Mingle red, Carnivale Sangria from Solomon Wine Co., Napa, CA. Three-piece 18.5-millimetre ZORK closure consists of outer polyethylene (PE) shell with tamper-evident strip that locks onto European CETIE band of cork-mouth bottle, aluminum foil liner to provide oxygen barrier similar to screw cap, stopper-shaped PE plunger to create pop on extraction, resealing capability.

To operate, consumer simply peels off tear strip, pushes closure up, and pulls it out. Pushing closure back into place recloses bottle, protects remaining wine.. Portola Packaging, Inc., Batavia, IL, produces closure for US market at its plant in Tolleson, AZ, under license from ZORK Pty. Ltd., Hackney, Australia. ZORK closure saves two cents/bottle vs. hand-applied T-cork with heat-shrinkable, printed polyvinyl chloride capsule it replaces. “Part of the romance of the industry is the pop of the cork,” says Scott Heron, president of Soloman Wine. “ZORK gives us that.” ZORK closure, printed in two colors with jester image, preserves brand identity after opening. Mobile bottlers take care of filling operation, sparging stock, 750-millilitre, deadleaf green glass bottles from Triology Glass and Packaging, Santa Rosa, CA, with nitrogen before filling. Modified corking machines orient, press ZORK closure in place. Hock-style bottle replaces saber glass bottle with bowling pin shape that was attractive but presented stability issues, labeling challenges. Labeltronix, Orange, CA, supplies pressure-sensitive paper labels printed in five-color process plus foiling. Paper label replaces clear pressure-sensitive label, which proved to be difficult to apply without bubbles. At end of line, operators load 12-count five-color corrugated shippers from Pacific Southwest Container, Modesto, CA. Perfs provide easy, knife-free access, while hinged top opens up to create header card, convert shipper to display. Inside, four printed paperboard carriers feature diamond cutout to showcase bottle label, die-cut tabs that flip up to form handle. Collapsible, three-pack carriers eliminate need for inserts typically found in wine cases as well as bagging at checkout. “We have learned that a typical wine purchase in a store is two to three bottles so we came up with a way to help carry the wines home or even to a party or picnic,” says Heron, who designed case/carrier configuration with assistance from Ryan Perkins, designer/engineer at Pacific Southwest. Design minimizes corrugated, eliminates need for production of point-of-purchase materials. Although wine is targeted to millennial (21-30) audience, packaging generates strong cross generational appeal. “Seniors love it because it doesn’t require a cork screw,” reports Heron. Follow-up: At Portola, Marketing Department, +1 630-406-8440, info@zorkusa.com; Link: www.zorkusa.com; at Trilogy, Jeff Oberti, +1 707-529-8160, jeff@trilogyglass.net; Link: www.trilogyglass.net; at Labeltronix, Bill Huey, +1 714-363-4162, bhuey@labeltronix.com; Link: www.labeltronix.com; at Pacific Southwest, Joe Donahue, +1 209-526-0444, ext. 913; Link: www.teampsc.com.

Packaging melts along with adhesive in hot-melt tank

Finger-size, ready-to-use packets of Technomelt® brand hot melt adhesives load directly into dispensing tank, where packaging melts along with adhesive. Designed to eliminate sticky cavity packaging, associated plastic waste, Henkel Corp., Rocky Hill, CT, offers ready-to-use ethylene-vinyl-acetate, polyolefin or pressure-sensitive hot melts in 28-pound boxes for applications such as package sealing, pressure-sensitive films. Follow-up: Marketing Department, +1 866-593-6387; Link: www.henkelna.com.

Source-tagged cores simplify tracking of paper rolls

Radio frequency identification (RFID) technology embedded in Intellicore fiber-based cores from Sonoco, Hartsville, SC, automates tracking of paper rolls. “The RFID-enabled paper rolls represent a step-change in material management for our site,” says Mike Ramsay, md, Mondi March Corrugated Packaging, part of Mondi plc, Addlestone, UK, “We have a solution that…enables automatic goods receipt and matching against order and shipping document without any manual intervention. The system gives the site real-time, fool-proof data that enables us to determine exactly which reel has been used for each customer product. This, for the first time, gives us full traceability so that we can guarantee to a customer that the correct type and source of paper has been used.” Dual frequency technology from IPICO Inc., Burlington, ON, Canada, combines high, low frequency technology to overcome reading difficulties associated with high moisture, carbon content of paper. Embedded RFID tag allows paper roll to be identified, tracked, and located at any point in supply chain. Quick identification of exact location of paper roll/grade improves visibility, reduces inventory, stockouts, while cutting waste, labor, costs. “This technology can be read through any size of paper roll, which allows for easy management throughout the product’s life cycle,” says John Colyer, vp, Industrial Products – North America at Sonoco. “Until now, the paper industry hasn’t been able to seamlessly provide real time tracking and location for the hundreds of millions of rolls it produces annually,” says Gordon Westwater, president/ceo of IPICO.” Follow-up: At Sonoco, Ginny T. Jones, +1 843-339-6048, ginny.jones@sonoco.com; Link: www.sonoco.com; at IPICO, Gordon Westwater, +1 905-631-6310, gordon.westwater@ipico.com; Link: www.ipico.com.

Ball makes commitments to sustainable practices

Advancing sustainable packaging ranks as one of five commitments Ball Corp., Broomfield, CO, makes in 2007 Sustainability Report. Toward a Sustainable Future report links environmental stewardship, corporate responsibility with economic success, lists four other goals: Reduce Our Environmental Footprint; Care for Our Employees and Communities; Create Prosperity for Us and Others; Strengthen Stakeholder Relationships. Report also includes company data, success stories. To reach goals, Ball pledges to use fewer virgin, more recycled materials; support recycling programs; understand environmental impact of packages produced by quantifying their carbon footprints; increase energy efficiency; increase diversity; support small businesses. Flowchart shows how packaging supply chain from raw materials to recyclers affect end of life cycle -- incineration, composting, landfill. “Our prosperity is clearly linked to the prosperity and success of others,” says R. David Hoover, chairman/president/ceo of Ball, adding, “We are committed to doing our part in protecting the environment for future generations and to being a responsible citizen of our shared global community.”

PACK EXPO preview: Shrink wrapper runs 140 packages/minute

Side-seal horizontal shrink wrapper handles 140 packages or 140 linear feet of film/minute. Scheduled to be displayed at PACK EXPO International, 9-13 November 2008 at McCormick Place, Chicago, IL, CAPRA® 8000SS shrink wrapper from ARPAC, Schiller Park, IL, features 24-inch-wide seal bar, 10-inch-high seal bar opening so it can be configured to run vertical end seals for tall packages. Film forming/delivery system with no-contact side seal runs polyethylene, polyolefin, polyvinyl chloride, polylactide films, prevents film buildup on seal mechanism, needs no tools to changeover. Use of single-wound film instead of center-folded cuts costs, doubles interval between film reel changeovers. Follow-up: Marketing Department, +1 847-678-4034, info@arpac.com; Link: www.arpac.com.

New owner plans to take Graham Packaging public

Thomas O. Hicks forms Hicks Acquisition Co. I, Inc., Dallas, TX, to acquire Graham Packaging Holdings Co., York, PA, for $3.2 billion. Hicks plans to take $2.5 billion container blowmolder public under name Graham Packaging Co. with current owner, The Blackstone Group, retaining 34%. Firm supplies more than 20 billion containers annually to branded food/beverage, household, personal care/specialty, automotive lubricant industries. Approximately 90% of sales derive from product categories where Graham holds the number-one market position. Deal includes 83 manufacturing plants in North America, Europe, South America, with one-third located on customer sites. “We believe our collocation strategy enhances coordination with our customer base and is the cornerstone of improved sustainability for our customers and for us,” says Warren Knowlton, Graham chairman/ceo. Knowlton, Mark Burgess, coo/cfo, existing management team remain in place.

Mixed bottle recycling plant supports users of recycled content

Closed Loop Recycling, Dagenham (London), UK, starts up what it claims is world’s first mixed bottle recycling plant. TFacility diverts 35,000 tons of containers from landfill including high-density polyethylene (HDPE) milk bottles, polyethylene terephthalate (PET) soft drink bottles. Customers for plant’s food-grade recycled resin include Coca-Cola Enterprises Ltd. (CCE), Marks & Spencer, Nampak Plastics Europe, Solo Cup (Europe), Reynolds Food Packaging. “This plant represents the evidence that the UK is undergoing a recycling revolution - until now there has been no facility to recycle bottles back into plastic food packaging,” says Chris Dow, md, Closed Loop Recycling. “The industry and consumer are now viewing recycled plastic in a completely new light, it is no longer waste; it is a valuable resource. In addition, each plastic bottle that we recycle reduces [its] carbon footprint by around 25% [based on bottle with 50% recycled content],” he reports. “We have a goal to use on average 25% recycled PET across CCE’s European operations by the end of 2010,” states Hubert Patricot, md, CCE. “We are delighted that Closed Loop Recycling’s plant…will help us purchase recycled PET here in the UK. It’s very encouraging to see a process that allows waste to be…reprocessed locally...” James Crick, business development director for Nampak, adds: “The agreement with Closed Loop Recycling to supply Nampak with up to 6000 tons each year of recycled HDPE is an important step toward recycled-content HDPE milk bottles being widely available in the UK for the first time….We are committed to supplying all our UK-manufactured HDPE milk bottles with up to 10% recycled content during 2008/09 and bottle-to-bottle recycling…presents the most sustainable and efficient means of recycling.”

North American production of easy-open ends begins

Improved tab access on Easylift easy-open ends makes food cans easier to open for consumers with limited mobility, including seniors, children, physically impaired. Convenience format from Crown Holdings’, Crown Food Packaging North America, Philadelphia, PA, begins US production in late 2008 at Massillon, OH, facility with 300-diameter size with additional sizes to come. New end, which works on existing can production lines with only minor adjustments, enables transition from former styles with little downtime. Patented panel design is compatible with wide range of food applications such as ready meals, fruits, vegetables, fish, dairy, pet food, ends. “Consumers across the food marketing spectrum are demanding products with convenience features to fit into their personal lifestyles,” says David Underwood, president of Crown Food Packaging North America, who adds, “Easylift’s easy-open ends enable our customers both in North America and Europe to meet this industry demand which can help differentiate brands and accelerate product turnover.” Crown boasts success with first Easylift trial, a 73mm on 400-gram packages of cat, dog food sold in The Netherlands by Nestle Purina Petcare Europe, Vevey, Switzerland. Follow-up: Hella Neffati, marketing manager (US), +1 215-698-6056, hella.neffati@crowncork.com; Ana Ces Agraso, marketing director (Europe), +44 1235 402796, ana.ces-agraso@eur.crowncork.com; Link: www.crowncork.com.

Alcan Packaging expands in central Europe

Alcan Packaging division of Rio Tinto Alcan, Montreal, QC, Canada, expands flexible packaging operations in central Europe. Company plans to invest €17 million (US$27 million) to build state-of-art converting/rotogravure printing facility in Novy Bydzov area of Czech Republic for production of food packaging. Schedule calls for startup in 4Q09, initial head count of 100. New facility joins Alcan Packaging Food Europe network of 31 plants in 18 countries, which generates annual sales of US$2.3 billion. Follow-up: Marie Bérard, Alcan Packaging Food Europe (Paris), +33 1 57 00 25 49, marie.berard@alcan.com; Link: www.riotinto.com/riotintoalcan.

Changeover: Sonoco… Toray… Valois... Nordenia…

Sonoco, Hartsville, SC, names Patrick B. Keese dvp/gm – Nestlé to oversee its relationship with largest food company in world; Keese previously served as dvp/gm of Sonoco’s Rigid Paper and Plastics Packaging business in Europe, will be relocating from UK to Hartsville… Toray Industries, Inc., Tokyo, Japan, names Kojiro Maeda first chairman of board of Toray Plastics (America), Inc., North Kingstown, RI; new position includes ceo duties; tenure with Toray Industries dates from 1976 when he joined research/development department, served in various positions until moving to Toray Plastics as technical director for Polypropylene, Polyester Film Manufacturing in 1998, more recently serving as evp, president of US-based operation… Valois, Marly-Le-Roi, France, appoints Alex Theodorakis president, Valois of America, Congers, NY; with more than 15 years’ tenure at supplier of aerosol dispensing systems, Theodorakis moves up from various positions such as director of Pharmaceutical Sales, director of Manufacturing for Pharmaceutical, Beauty/Home Divisions, coordinator of US-based projects… Wolfram Bruening takes helm as md of Nordenia Deutschland Gronau GmbH, Greven, Germany, succeeding Werner Buerkle, who retires after 17 years at supplier of printed packaging films, automatic packaging systems; Bruening hails from Johnson Controls, Milwaukee, WI, where he most recently served as md of division in Gräfrath, Germany…

Upstream: PMMI Safety Conference…

PMMI Safety Conference, 16-17 July 2008 at Hyatt Rosemont, Rosemont, IL, examines product liability, packaging machinery buyers’ safety requirements, risk assessment; highlight of two-day meeting, organized by Packaging Machinery Manufacturers Institute (PMMI, www.pmmi.org/safety), Arlington, VA, brings Procter & Gamble, Cincinnati, OH, on stage to discuss its new purchasing policy, which specifies equipment be certified by National Recognized Testing Laboratory recognized by Occupational Safety and Health Administration, Washington, DC…

ShortRuns: Barry-Wehmiller… Shiner… Greif… Norampac…

Barry-Wehmiller Design Group, Inc., division Barry-Wehmiller Cos., Inc., St. Louis, MO, opens 20-employee engineering consulting office in Raleigh, NC; facility specializes in pharmaceutical, biotech; offers industrial automation, architectural engineering, process control, software design, regulatory compliance services; ranks as division’s fourth new office in past year, thirteenth altogether in US, Puerto Rico… US-owned flexible packaging supplier, Shiner International, Inc., Hainan, China, contracts with Asian food manufacturing conglomerate, Hsu Fu Chi International, Dongguan, China, to supply 1,200 tons of coated films for approximately $5.5 million; deal supports Shiner’s growing Chinese market presence... Global supplier of industrial packaging, contract packaging services, Greif, Inc., Delaware, OH, accepts invitation to join World Business Council on Sustainable Development, Geneva, Switzerland, coalition of 200 multinational firms from more than 35 countries, which explores ways for companies, governments, organizations to work together to foster sustainable development… Norampac division of Cascades Canada Inc., St. Bruno, QC, shifts production to three mills in US, Canada to offset indefinite shutdown of its 180,000 short ton/year coated recycled boxboard mill in Toronto, ON, Canada, due to high labor costs, rising fiber, energy costs; mill employs about 140…

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