Coca-Cola Amatil has launched its new bottle preform and closure facility at Eastern Creek in Victoria, a $57 million investment in its beverage manufacturing capability. The new plant, which uses injection moulding technology, will manufacture plastic bottle caps and PET resin “preforms”, which are test-tube shaped moulds used to manufacture CCA’s PET plastic beverage bottles. CCA said the Eastern Creek facility is the final stage in CCA’s vertical integration of its manufacturing facilities... ...Read more »

Harmful mineral oils from the printing inks used on cardboard can migrate into food if recycled cardboard is used for food packaging. It may contaminate food even if the recycled cardboard is used for the corrugated card transport box that holds individual packs. In tests on experimental packs of fine noodles, researchers in Zurich, Switzerland, found that food rapidly absorbed 10 times the recommended limit for concentration of these contaminating oils from the transport box. The findings... ...Read more »

The Ardagh Group has announced that it has begun manufacturing the first Australian-made aluminium beverage bottles at its facility in Taree, NSW. Ardagh said it took the decision to extend the Taree aluminium portfolio from aerosols to aluminium bottles after its research identified an opportunity to enter a niche, but growing, market segment. “Aluminium bottles offer some specific advantages to beverage brand owners,” said Ardagh Group business development manager Sion Orritt. “The... ...Read more »

Packaging company Chronos BTH and Australian Prime Fibre (APF) will be exhibiting a new state-of-the-art packaging system at this year’s AUSPACK PLUS 2011 expo,  the new Chronos BTH Bottom-Up Bag Filling System. Chronos BTH has recently developed and introduced a hygienic bottom-up filling system for powders (especially dairy products) into open-mouth bags. The innovative dust-poor, patented bottom-up filling technology guarantees high accuracies in the filling process of powders. The machine... ...Read more »

Mars Inc is looking to boost sales of its range of Dolmio Bolognese sauces in the UK with revamped packaging that emphasises the products contain “100% natural ingredients”.The company said the new packaging will also feature the “infamous Papa Dolmio”, a character featured in the brand’s advertising, but until now has not appeared on pack. The new packaging will also feature the key ingredients within the sauces and will not contain any artificial colours, flavours... ...Read more »

Packaging that alerts consumers to food which is starting to go off is being developed by researchers at the University of Strathclyde in the UK. The project aims to improve food safety and cut unnecessary food waste by developing a new type of indicator, made of ‘intelligent plastics’ which give a warning, by changing colour, of when food is about to lose its freshness because it has broken or damaged packaging, has exceeded its ‘best before’ date or has been poorly refrigerated. An... ...Read more »

Territorians should not be fooled into believing the NT Government’s proposed Cash for Containers legislation is a ‘magic pudding’ for Christmas that won’t cost consumers or government anything, the Australian Food and Grocery Council (AFGC) said today. In an open letter to NT Members of Parliament published in the NT News today, AFGC urged political leaders not to vote for the legislation until all costings, analysis and details have been released by the Government. AFGC Chief... ...Read more »

US chocolate maker Hershey has filed a lawsuit against confectionery rival Mars Inc, accusing it of copying Hershey’s packaging for its Dove Promise squares. The lawsuit, filed in the federal district court of Pennsylvania last week, argues that Mars packaged its Dove peanut butter chocolate Promise squares in such a way that it mimics the patented orange, brown and tan wrappings of Reece’s peanut butter chocolate products. Hershey said in the complaint that the use of the colours is... ...Read more »

Consumer group CHOICE says that while advances in technology and transportation extends the shelf life of food, there is a price for availability and convenience in terms of nutrition and taste. A variety of techniques are used by the food industry to extend the shelf life of fresh foods, including atmospheric packs, storage of apples in 1-methylcyclopropene (1-MCP), vacuum packing with carbon dioxide and nitrogen, and of course refrigeration. CHOICE disputes the description of such products as ‘fresh’.... ...Read more »

The Northern Territory Government’s proposed container deposit legislation (CDL) will have a significant cost for consumers, according the Australian Food and Grocery Council (AFGC). AFGC Chief Executive Kate Carnell said the idea that the Territory Government’s proposed CDL legislation – the Environmental Protection (Beverage Containers and Plastic Bags) Bill 2010 – is a “free option” is completely misleading. “The NT CDL scheme will have enormously high... ...Read more »