THREE ‘Bio Sonne’ brand vegetable varieties are now available in Germany in the heat-resistant combisafe carton pack from SIG Combibloc.
The combisafe carton packs, filled by food manufacturer Jütro, have a volume of 440 ml: an innovation in the industry, because products which consumers have traditionally bought in standard food metal cans are now also on sales shelves in carton packs, packaged in exactly the same drained weight like in metal cans.
Dominik Haug, Global Market Segment Manager Food at SIG Combibloc said, “More than 200 products are now sold in our heat-resistant carton pack, and more are appearing all the time. The major strengths of carton packs are their convenience, their product protection qualities and their good environmental characteristics. Carton packs are proven to be among the most environmentally friendly packaging solutions for long-life foods – that’s been verified by scientific, ISO-compliant and critically reviewed life-cycle studies conducted by the renowned Institute for Energy and Environmental Research.
“In terms of logistics and advertising effectiveness on the sales shelf, cartons clearly outperform competing packaging solutions. In addition, carton packs from SIG Combibloc are, of course, free from Bisphenol-A. World-wide, more and more retailers, food companies and consumers are being won over by these advantages, and are reaching for products in carton packs”.
SIG Combibloc’s combisafe is a carton packaging that is suitable above all for particularly chunky foods, and for all food products that cannot pass through a pumping system and an aseptic process – such as vegetables and pulses, fruit, convenience foods and stews.
For filling in combisafe, the proven SIG Combibloc sleeve system is used. Through the use of three modular filling units, including a high-precision multi-head weigher, a hugely diverse range of products can be filled in combisafe – the size and quantity of the chunky product ingredients can vary in virtually any respect and can be measured out precisely. After the products have been filled into the carton pack, which is open at the top, the carton top is sealed ultrasonically.
The carton packs are then automatically conveyed into an autoclave, which can be either static or rotary. In the area of long-life food carton packs, the use of rotary autoclaves is a world first. Not only do the autoclaves, in which package and product are sterilised together, guarantee maximum product quality; through the continuous rotation of the carton packs during heating, they also make it possible to fill and process certain products in the first place – above all, highly viscous foods with extra-large pieces.
Until now, combisafe has come in 200, 300, 400 and 500 ml volumes. Now, the 440 ml volume can also be offered. All can be filled on a single SIG Combibloc filling machine.
With the launch of ‘Bio Sonne’ peas, corn, and peas & carrots, the first carton packs in the new volume are now on sale. The carton packs are filled by German food manufacturer Jütro. Dominik Haug added, “The additional carton volume gives food manufacturers even more scope. Products which consumers have traditionally bought in standard food metal cans are now also able to be offered in carton packs, packaged in precisely the same drained weight like in standard food metal cans – that’s a world first in the carton industry. It means consumers don’t need to get used to a new product quantity when they opt for traditionally canned products packaged in a carton pack. On the contrary: They can get the usual product quantity, and benefit from the many advantages of the carton pack.
“Carton packs are lightweight and easy to use, they can be stacked in a space-saving way, and they’re unbreakable. The perforation right across the carton top makes it possible to open the carton pack easily without additional tools such as scissors or knives, and empty it out completely.”
In the production process, a volume change can be implemented on the combisafe filling machines in just a few minutes – and the design can be switched without any interruption to the production process.
