Every other year, PACK EXPO International brings leaders from around the world to discuss innovations and to speculate on the future of the industry. This year’s international show in Chicago, October 28-31, is expected to break record numbers and will inevitably shape the future of packaging. As we move forward, Zip-Pak has recognized certain global trends that will remain important for innovative packaging solutions.

Convenience – Consumers seek out resealable packaging specifically for their convenience. Resealable sliders are highly intuitive, allowing greater ease-of-use and added consumer convenience. Resealable packaging allows for multi-serve portions, and negates the need to transfer food to an unbranded, generic container once opened. This also keeps brand messages in front of the consumer throughout the product lifecycle.

Performance/Cost- Retrofit options allow brand owners to add zippers to a package without a capital investment and research has shown consumers are willing to pay more for a resealable package.

Protection- Consumers will continue to demand that packaging keeps their food safe and fresh. Resealable packaging prevents prolonged air exposure, which can cause products to lose flavor, scent and nutrients faster. Adding a resealable closure will help eliminate exposure and prolong positive product experiences. Each time a consumer opens the package for another serving; the product will taste, smell and feel just like it did the first time.

Sustainability – Environmentally-conscious consumers will continue to appreciate how resealable packaging prevents food waste, a substantial aspect of sustainability. Resealable packaging helps prevent food waste by maintaining food quality for longer, both in store and at home. Protecting food freshness will help contribute to a reduction in food waste.

Consumer convenience is one of the ultimate goals of any packaging supplier. The convenience of the package often determines consumer loyalty and reliance. For many consumers, the ability to reseal a package is one of the most convenient features available, and when it comes to flexible packaging, a resealable closure is just a zipper away.

Adding a zipper to a resealable package may seem daunting, but many packaging manufacturers are unaware how easy and inexpensive the addition of a resealable closure can be. Perhaps the simplest way is to retrofit existing packaging lines with zipper application equipment. Without significant investments in completely new lines or interruptions to manufacturing, closure solutions can be easily added to a machine.

At Zip-Pak, our engineers are willing to collaborate with companies who are interested in this transition. We recognize the importance of having a knowledgeable business partner that understands the value of your operation and the importance of your product. Our retrofitting capabilities can help add zipper technology to an existing line for around 20 to 30 percent of the cost of an entirely new line. We also partner with OEMs and film suppliers around the world to ensure the retrofit applicator functions correctly and packages remain easy to open and reclose.

The cost-effective nature of retrofitting makes it an ideal capital investment for companies in emerging markets like Latin America or China. Companies in these geographic areas have the opportunity to upgrade packaging by adding a convenient feature to help meet the demands of the growing market.

In the end, finding a way to enhance the convenience of your package is worth the investment. Luckily, the addition to a zipper is relatively inexpensive, and making your package resealable might just be the edge needed to get the product off the store shelf and into the shopping cart.

Zipbox®, a joint venture between Zip-Pak and T.H.E.M., will sponsor of Packaging Digest’s Innovations in Food and Beverage Packaging to be held at the Hyatt Regency, Rosemont in Chicago April 18-19, 2012. The conference will create a forum for experts and key decision makers in food and beverage packaging to discuss new industry trends and best practices for implementing them. The industry sees constant technological advancements, and the conference will serve as a collaborative discussion about consumer perceptions surrounding new innovations.

Frank Kelly, Business Manager for Zipbox®, will participate in a consumer perception panel – titled “Packaging design that engages consumers and promotes shelf appeal” – at 10:20 a.m. on Wednesday, April 18.   The panel will cover a variety of topics, including: debunking “greenwashing” claims, finding a balance between consumer convenience and sustainable packaging, improving consumer usability and understanding foreign regulations for global business.

Zipbox will also host a morning coffee break on the first day of the conference where we will highlight the first commercial launch of our resealable carton – Plantation® Raw Sugar.  More information about the event can be found at www.fbpackaging.com. Space is limited, so register early!

Zipbox® is an innovative package format that combines the stability of a carton with the convenience of a resealable flexible package. This format offers new ways to market products on store shelves and enhance consumer convenience at home.

Last year, we introduced the first commercial application for Zipbox® – Plantation brand sugar from U.S. Sugar Co – which is the focus of this month’s Packaging Digest cover article. The article is packed with all the benefits Zipbox® offers, and explains why Plantation chose this revolutionary format for its sugar application.

While sugar is the first customer application, Zipbox® is suitable for a variety of consumer applications, including cereals, snacks, cookies, powdered goods, and anything that can be packed in a carton and needs to be kept fresh.

For more information about Zipbox® and U.S. Sugar, read the full Packaging Digest article, titled “Zippy New Carton is Revolutionary.”

According to a recent report from the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), a division of the United Nations, which was recently presented at Interpack 2011, Americans and Europeans produce approximately 209-253 pounds of food waste a year.  Based on a report from the CDC, the American male weighs about 200 lbs on average.  Yes, folks, we are literally throwing away our weight, and then some, in food every year.

The report from FAO highlights the reasons for food waste in the US and Europe.  One of these factors is the perceived freshness of perishables.

We at Zip-Pak have been discussing this issue for quite a while.  Resealable flexible packaging improves product freshness by reducing exposure to oxygen and other environmental contaminates.

We’re interested to see if these findings will be reported by the mainstream consumer media.  One thing is for sure, in a world of increasingly worrying reports of impending environmental challenges, a sustainable future has become a global issue for governments, consumers, retailers and brand owners alike, and food waste is certainly part of the problem.

The Dieline.com, a leading packaging design blog, recently uploaded a massive collection of vintage cereal boxes that follows multiple brands’ designs through the years.  Talk about a walk down memory lane!  But it occurred to us here at Zip-Pak that not much has really changed over the years…

From Olympic champions to kid-friendly characters, countless cultural icons have graced American breakfast tables on cereal boxes for decades.  The dominant packaging format, bag-in-box, has served its purpose for just as long. Will the bag-in-box format continue to have staying power?

As consumers increasingly criticize any seemingly excess packaging, the cereal box seems like obvious prey.  And as the trend toward keeping products fresher, longer to reduce food waste continues to take hold, trying unsuccessfully to tuck away the plastic bag inside a cereal box could soon become as retro as Dinky Donuts and Frosty O’s.

Cereal manufacturers seem cautious, and they may have good reason.  Cereal is and has been a staple in American homes since the 1930’s.  Last year, a simple re-design of Tropicana orange juice cartons resulted in consumer resistance, prompting the brand to abandon its new sleek look for the consumer-preferred traditional package.  With that in mind, it is to be expected that changing a package as iconic as the cereal box could result in a similar uproar.

Fortunately for both brand managers and consumers, new packaging technologies are on the horizon and could meet demands for both a box and a pouch.  Semi-flexible containers, for instance, provide consumers with the ability to stack boxes in a cabinet while still offering the convenience of a resealable closure.  Such innovative concepts also meet the need to keep products fresh throughout the last use, helping to reduce food waste, which can emit harmful carbon dioxide during decomposition in a landfill.

With new technologies and packaging solutions available to consumer product companies these days, we believe the cereal aisle is long overdue for a material makeover.

Packaging not only greets consumers and influences their purchasing decisions immediately, but it can also empower them to try something new.  With that in mind, Starbucks launched a new labeling system for its packaged coffee last year.  Calling the design a “level system,” the brand’s packaging tells consumers which coffee fits their taste profile through a numbering and color system.

It’s an innovative concept, especially for those consumers who are increasingly time-crunched and looking for ways to shop easier and smarter.  In addition, less-seasoned coffee drinkers can feel more empowered about their purchasing decision by the information on the label, ensuring they are picking the right premium coffee for their tastes.  It opens the brand up to a new group of consumers; those that want to try premium coffee but have perhaps been too intimidated to do so.

Consumer product goods companies should take note of how Starbucks is enticing shoppers and consider similar labeling systems for the unique aspects of their products.

In a recent article from Packaging World, predictions are made for the future of the packaging industry in the seemingly likely event that resources will be hard to come by.

Not surprisingly, the article predicts that the most resource-efficient package will dominate the market. Sustainability and the idea of “going green” permeate almost every type of industry these days, and packaging is no exception.

In addition to sustainability, though, packagers will need to keep in mind functionality. While this is still an important factor in today’s packaging world, it will become even more important in the resource-strapped future. Companies who pay the most attention to the resources that go into their packaging and the carbon footprint it leaves behind will find the most success.

At Zip-Pak, we’re constantly thinking about the environment and our impact on it. Our resealable solutions support sustainability in areas such as package-to-product ratios, CO2 emissions and cube utilization, and we are a proud member of the Sustainable Packaging Coalition.

This article from Packaging World has only done more to validate our belief that sustainability should be a priority in packaging, both now and in the future.

Zipbox®, a joint venture between Zip-Pak and T.H.E.M., announces that Plantation® brand natural “raw”  sugar will be the first product to go to market in the new  Zipbox® resealable carton format.

Plantation®, which  will debut in the United States this year, chose Zipbox® because it alters the packaging landscape on the shelf, ensuring it stands out among traditional pouch packs in the “natural sugars” segment.

“When we were first introduced to the Zipbox, its novelty was compelling because we knew it would resonate with retailers as an innovative new package format,” said William McDaniel, President and CEO of U.S. Sugar Co., Inc., the manufacturer of the Plantation brand.  “There has not been a successful packaging innovation in the sugar category for several years, and we are excited to take our Plantation brand to market as the first in this type of package.”

Zipbox is a poly-coated paperboard carton incorporating an attached flexible film header containing a ZIP-PAK® Press-to-Close™ solution.  Zipbox is designed to facilitate direct-filling of products without the need for an inner liner.  By removing the liner, the package can hold up to 40 percent more product,  maximizing the product-to-package ratio and cube utilization to reduce transportation costs.

“We were pleased to see the cost of producing the Zipbox was quite competitive with other package formats when taking fill speeds and pallet efficiencies into account,” adds McDaniel.

The three-pound Zipbox format was chosen in order to give the consumer a better value compared to existing “raw sugar” products.  The larger quantity is meant for multiple uses, making Zipbox the ideal package format to enhance consumer convenience through easy opening and reclosing.  Zipbox® also eliminates the need to use clips or transfer contents into a separate container, keeping marketing messages in front of the consumer through the last use.

“In our consumer insight testing, Zipbox was recognized as an intuitive and easy-to-use package format for consumers of all ages,” explains Frank Kelly, Business Manager for Zipbox.  “The Plantation sugar team is certainly forward-thinking when it comes to delivering on the types of convenient features consumers now demand.”

“Commercializing a new product can be extremely challenging, but the supply chain partners and brand worked well together,” concludes Neil Kozarsky, President of T.H.E.M.  “We are applying this initial experience to a wide range of brands that are eager to deliver innovation and convenience.”

In large stores that carry thousands of different brands, it can be hard to stand out from the crowd, or rather, the shelf.

A recent innovation survey from Shelf Impact! takes a look at some of the most unique and well thought-out packaging designs across all types of industries, from beauty to ice cream to alcohol.

The 15 package designs that landed a spot on this list did so for a variety of reasons, including sustainability and artistic design. One of the most versatile on the list is Greek winemaker Ktima Gerovassilou, whose wine containers have a built in handle for easy carrying and can also double as wine rack. Such an innovative feature means it can be used over and over again for other bottles once the wine that came in it has been finished.

Each of the examples on the list, found a way to stand out to consumers in innovative ways. Not only are they visually pleasing, but their designs make life easier for consumers.

Leave a message in the comments with your favorite new innovative packaging features.