When it comes to contract manufacturing what defines innovation?

JoAnne Hines: Packaging innovation is something that changes the traditional way of using packaging. In contract manufacturing it could be a better way of solving a problem, becoming more efficient, better resource utilization, all of which translate into lower costs and more efficient delivery.

Leslie Gurland: An innovation is something that is new to the consumer, and delivers ease of use, or appeal. It can also be something that makes the contract manufacturer’s process more efficient or environmentally friendly in terms of the type or amount of packaging being used. It could also be something that saves the contract manufacturer or its customer money.

Debra Darby: Responding to consumer demand for packaging that performs as expected (or marketed), but also lessens environmental impact, is an important aspect of innovation. The key is to design packaging materials with end-of-life in mind, and educate manufacturers on the value of materials that are both high quality and environmentally responsible. Users want to know that biodegradable plastic packaging can replace regular plastic and help eliminate plastic waste through anaerobic digestion, home composting or industrial composting.

David Brown: When it comes to manufacturing, what I think it is, is what is going to change the category, what is going to get the product off the shelf, from a retail standpoint, how is that going to move product for you. I think the consumer ultimately decides that, from an innovation standpoint. For example, if you just use steam, steam in bag product, for frozen vegetables, that was clearly a consumer need that wasn’t even being explored.

So, I think you have to explore and understand what the consumer wants in packaging, that’s what defines innovation.

Jack Podnar: A true innovation is a new, novel process that provides greater benefits.

Kurt Kroening: Innovation is about having meaningful differentiation so you can offer things—better things—that others cannot.

Janelle Oxford: We believe processing aseptically is as innovative as it gets in our industry. The process uses less water, products can be shipped dry, can have longer shelf life and have added food safety benefits compared to conventional processing. KanPak has long been a leader in improving the aseptic process and educating the public about the benefits of aseptic during the last three decades. Today, KanPak can create dairy, nondairy, soy, high-acid and low-acid bag-in-box, pouch and bottle products that help customers compete on a new playing field.

>What do you consider an innovation in packaging?

Hines: Innovation for me is a game changer. I see lots of packaging ideas and products that I consider tweaks to existing packaging solutions. What truly is packaging innovation makes people change how they shop and what they buy. Innovation can create an entire new packaging category like MAP [modified atmosphere packaging] or microwavable packaging has done. A new cap or a different shape box is not innovation unless it allows something unique and different to be done with the package.

Unfortunately innovation is a buzz word that many times is used when it’s not really innovative.

Rani Stern: We’re seeing innovation in larger pouches. We’ve made great advances in bigger pouches for institutional use – anything from retort pouches for prepared food to large condiment pouches with fitments for condiments, soups and sauces. We have seen great interest in bag-without-box pouches for wine and other beverages in 1.5, 2 and 3-liter sizes, and in big pouches with laser-scored handles that offer better consumer convenience.

On the opposite end of the size scale, retort pouches for baby food have become very popular in Europe – we are making them for several chains. Consumer convenience and efficiency on the manufacturing side make baby food pouches a growing trend.

Two-compartment pouches – which allow manufacturers to package ingredients together that should not be mixed until it’s time to combine them during meal preparation, like fresh pasta and sauce – are also a significant new category. Other customer-focused pouches are one-compartment pouches for honey and other high-viscosity foods and a laminate that has paper and clear windows in the structure.

Laser scoring micropores into certain laminates is a growing trend in fresh fruit and other produce where a longer shelf life can make a big financial difference. And we use our laser scoring capabilities to create handles for large pouches as a consumer-friendly feature that helps shoppers accept bigger packaging that manufacturers can handle more efficiently and economically. We are also doing very well with flexible packaging for caulks and adhesives.

Gurland: At Interpack [an international trade fair focusing on packaging machines and appliances], I just saw very innovative manufacturing equipment and a product called LitePac, developed by Krones. A pair of straps can replace film shrink wrap for six-packs of certain shapes of PET beverage bottles, using 70 percent less packaging material and promising up to 50-percent cost savings.

We have also begun working with an extraordinary technology called the CoolVu T&S (thaw and sell) indicator by a company called Freshpoint. The CoolVu is a time-temperature indicator technology that can be frozen after it is applied. When it is thawed, a steady reaction between two layers of the label slowly exposes a colored panel that indicates that a product has reached its sell-by date. The brilliance of the system is not only how well it works and how intuitive it is for shoppers to understand, but the fact that the CoolVu can be applied by the contract manufacturer of sandwiches, deli meats and sausages, pastries and other value-added foods prior to freezing. That eliminates the high cost of manual labeling and the potential errors from having a grocery store or C-store clerk applying “best before” labels when stocking merchandise and it gives consumers extra confidence in the product. It’s a great fit for pouched, shrink-wrapped or poly-bagged products. The result is that the customer is saving money and getting a better-controlled, more uniform product – which is great for the manufacturer, the customer and the consumer.

In terms of production from Tadbik and Logotech, linerless labels will be an important innovation because they create less waste and reduce costs by eliminating the liner and putting more labels on a roll.

I would say our patent-pending ARS resealable labels for flexible packaging for wipes are another exciting innovation. What’s interesting is that the stopper that creates a dead zone in the adhesive to provide a finger grip area for easy opening is part of the lamination. That means they’re efficient to produce, they use 30 percent less material and that they run on the contract manufacturer’s existing labeling equipment.

Last, polyethylene terephthlalate (PET) lidding for thermoformed cups offers great consumer appeal, and they’re kid-friendly. They are also extremely efficient for manufacturers, as there’s no longer a need to X-ray packages to ensure that aluminum has not fallen into the package.

Darby: A true packaging innovation is bioplastic packaging that is not only biobased, but is also biodegradable – the difference being that biodegradable plastic can decompose under certain environmental conditions, while this is not always true with biobased plastics (not all biobased plastics are biodegradable). Usability of biobased and biodegradable plastics is also an important aspect of packaging innovation, as there is a strong demand for materials made from annually renewable resources that can replace the use of petroleum-based plastics.

Brown: We’re a major vegetable company, so the steam bag is probably one of the biggest for us. Something that I’ve seen is a steam carton. Its basically a carton that has vegetables with sauce in it, and you put the carton in the microwave and you can actually eat it out of the carton, it’s like a little bowl that you can eat vegetables out of. Another one is Lean Cuisine, and their sandwiches, how they can microwave those things, on a grilling pad, and its looks like its been grilled in the oven and everything, and those are pretty cool, so those are good innovations in packaging. For us it’s the steam bag, and putting sauce in the steam bags, and that’s a good innovation for us, so basically you don’t have to add any ingredients to the vegetables, you can just cook it, cook the vegetables in the steamed bag, you don’t have to open it, you don’t have to tear it open, you don’t have to put it in a pot, you don’t have to dirty a pot, you can put it in the microwave, you can nuke it for a couple of minutes and you’ve got an entré, if you want it, if that’s all you’re going to eat, it also complements the dish that you’re cooking.

Podnar: There must be benefits for the consumer such as easier availability and convenience. There must be benefits for the packager such as faster fill -speed, more down time and less costs. For the brand, the new product must increase sales yet still remain sustainable at a low cost and increase awareness of the brand itself.

Kroening: Utilizing the package itself as an intelligent marketing tool is one of the greatest innovations of the packaging industry. Incorporating structural concept, design, printed effects and human response research to provide maximum impact at the point of purchase.

Oxford: In February 2010, KanPak made a capital investment to expand its packaging offering to include an aseptic bottling line. That was a significant innovation in our industry, as it provides customers with individual plastic bottles to stock on their shelves with all of the benefits of being produced aseptically. In fact, KanPak is the first low-acid aseptic company to be able to file low-acid PET utilizing vaporized peroxide for bottle sterilization while meeting FDA Peroxide Residuals requirements with PET. This is a pretty big step in our category, and we are seeing great results.

>Looking at the current state of the industry today would you say there are more or less innovations on the market? Why?

Hines: There are a lot of packaging innovations around new technology, technology that didn’t exist even a few years ago. Technology can be a new material such as all the packaging material innovations in the sustainability arena or it can be a technology such as QR codes and track-and-trace devices. There are still opportunities out there as consumers demand better packaging solutions and want less over all packaging.

Gurland: I think there’s more innovation right now. Consumers demand new products, new packaging, new features and a sense that products are evolving. And retailers like Walmart and Costco drive innovation by placing demands on their suppliers for increased efficiency, lower cost and more environmentally sound packaging.

Darby: There seems to be a focus on reducing the size of packaging, as well as the amount of material used – but this doesn’t necessarily reduce the problem with packaging waste sent to landfills.

Brown: More, I would say. Because of the change in technology, and just the advent of when you look at marketing, from a marketing standpoint as well. Right now, we’re exploring QR codes, and the QR code is where you can take the iPhone, and take a picture of the QR code and image it and it brings up recipes and how you can use that product in the store, or what the ingredients are, what the nutritional values are, you know, things like that about the product, or the marketing behind the product, if there is some kind of coupon on that.

Podnar: More innovations but more confusion. Packaging innovation can take on many forms and go in many directions. All have good and bad points but each unto themselves can help push a product. Lots of innovations are imperceptible to consumers, which can be good if change is not wanted. From an expansion of brands idea, consumer-known innovation can add value to acquiring new customers whom may not have bought before but now will based on different packaging innovation.

Kroening: More. Over the past decade, more attention has been given to the quality of the appearance of the package. The race to differentiate one’s self has heated up. Customers are demanding it. But to create packaging that has maximum impact at the point of sale, highly focused smart package marketing research must combine package structure concepting, graphic design, print effects, new technologies and human response or marketing psychology. Design that takes advantage of highly sensory effects is an intricate part of the total message you want to deliver with the package. The right package helps the consumer experience the product in a way that intrigues and compels them.

Oxford: We continue to see new products in customized packaging make their mark on the shelves and grab consumers’ attention. Products are differentiated by packaging and use, which is great to see. For example, KanPak works with Made, an organic green tea beverage company, and their packaging needed to reflect the organic quality of their product. We used our in-house capabilities to design and create bottle prototypes unique to Made. Having those resources on-site helps keep our customers on the leading edge.


>Who ultimately decides that an innovation is needed?

Hines: Actually the consumer decides. Innovation comes to the fore when there is an unmet consumer need. I’ve seen packaging innovations go bust because it wasn’t something the consumer wanted or was not researched thoroughly enough as what the consumer really was expecting. A good example of this was the recent introduction of the SunChips compostable package. Looked good in theory and on paper but the problem was consumers hated it.

Gurland: It depends on who you ask. Most people in the industry will say that Walmart and Costco are driving the push for innovation. But everybody up and down the supply chain is looking for efficiency, cost savings and something new to bring to a competitive marketplace. Ultimately, the consumer decides which innovations will be accepted

Darby: There really needs to be clear communication between the packaging industry and consumers. Consumer engagement is needed, and the messaging needs to be about the value of consumer demand that can drive design innovation. For example, paying more for innovative packaging that can be placed in a composting or anaerobic digestion facility and not in a landfill. This requires a change in consumer behavior and a willingness to participate. I think younger generations understand this, but businesses need to take leadership now. This will help develop the infrastructure for a more responsible packaging value cycle.

Kroening: Innovation is needed; but it’s not always a conscious decision. Sure, you have to consciously decide to make the investment and pursue innovation, but visionary people often have a need to concept, to be innovative and create the innovation. Then they figure out how to create the demand and illustrate the value to those who will buy into it.

Oxford: KanPak has used the team approach since being founded 30 years ago. As a team, we work together to identify innovative possibilities and how they could be integrated into our facilities. Most additions or alterations to our packaging line affect other areas of our facility. Because we have team members from each area of the business represented, we can proactively identify the impact and plan in advance.

Additionally, customer needs often play a role in introducing innovation. For example, we are now using shrink-wrap to replace some outside packaging in order to reduce corrugated use while maintaining ease of shipment. This was a suggestion by a customer that we might not otherwise have pursued.

>What challenges do companies face when innovating contract manufacturing and packaging?


Hines: Many times innovation is behind the scenes and consumers truly don’t care. One of the biggest challenges is getting buy-in from consumers about the role packaging has to play in modern society. Consumers want products, they just don’t want the packaging that gets it there, a huge education gap.

Gurland: The biggest challenge is committing the time and money needed to innovate. Another challenge is getting line time on the contract manufacturer or contract packager’s facility to validate the concepts and fine-tune the new packaging.

Darby: When it comes to innovation, I think one of the biggest challenges is ensuring the performance of the packaging. It’s clear that consumers are concerned about the health of the environment.

Brown: I think the challenges are just that with the new packaging, its just talking about cost from the manufacturing standpoint. If you’re coming out with steam-in bag, the polypore for the steam-in bag is much more expensive than what we normally use for a regular poly bag. So the poly in the packaging, for the steam back, and I don’t know the technical term for it, is much more expensive than the other, than the previous ancestor, so that’s a cost, but the benefits of the product and what that packaging brings to the consumer outweigh that cost for the manufacturer, so there’s always added cost to the innovation and packaging.

Podnar: Our biggest risk is getting buy-in commitments from companies and innovating in directions they really want versus what they say they want.

Kroening: Innovation has higher upfront cost, both for the manufacturer and the customer. Justifying that cost and being able to show the potential ROI is sometimes a challenge.

Oxford: One challenge is adapting the production line to accommodate a change. That’s why we take the team approach to implement any innovation, so that we can identify how one change impacts the rest of the operation.

Another challenge is quality assurance testing. We have a strict QA process to help ensure all products leaving our facilities meet our high standard of excellence. Involving the QA team early in the innovation process helps create efficiencies and smooth transitions.


>What do you see as the future of packaging innovation?

Hines: I see the future as very bright. New products, new solutions, some we haven’t dreamed of yet. We need some totally new packaging that can revolutionize the industry.

Stern: Environmental friendliness is very important – laminates made of similar materials that can be recycled together, special lacquers, high-barrier PET that will be an environmentally friendly replacement for PVC coating. And better appearance is always important.

The whole market is price-driven. People mostly look for a good price, a way to reduce their costs, especially because competition is so tough as everybody fights to meet the prices dictated by the big chains. Most innovation is going to go to reducing gauge or eliminating materials. It’s got environmental benefits, but is mainly driven by cost.

Gurland: Innovation will continue, but it will happen at an even faster pace. Advances in material science, innovation in food science and product development, changes in manufacturing and marketing – all these will keep pushing the packaging industry in new directions

Darby: Certainly, I think the future of packaging innovation lies with developing a strong market for bioplastic packaging materials that are durable in use but will also biodegrade completely – partial biodegradation or fragmentation is not acceptable. It is about designing packing with the proper ultimate disposal in mind.

Podnar: A proliferation of diverging ideas from every corner of the packaging industry, segmenting the market into smaller, happier chunks.

Kroening: More and more momentum in the “package as a marketing tool” movement.

UV print technology is the platform that has opened up an incredible new spectrum of eye-catching printing effects and techniques. User friendly structural design software gives structural design competency to the graphic artist team, which allows structural concept and graphic design to be worked on together in harmony as one effort.

Sophisticated and powerful UV print technologies can provide an infinite range of unique effects and options. One example is compelling new forms of lenticular [produced by a lens] visual effects including animation, enhanced 3D and image-to-image flips. This is important because lenticular has the power to stop people right in their tracks. Consumers gain a new experience simply when walking by the box.

Oxford: As companies continue to seek out green products, we expect the aseptic processing industry to surge. Aseptic products can be shipped dry, can have longer shelf life and uses less water, energy and natural resources overall to be produced. These are three huge factors that keep customers competitive in this highly aggressive industry. The environmental and monetary cost of shipping products across the country in refrigerated tractor-trailers is enormous. If a customer can reduce shipping costs, it can have a direct impact on their bottom line. Packaging aseptically is a viable solution many are turning to.

>What defines a leader in packaging/contract manufacturing innovation?


Hines: Leaders consistently stand above the crowd solving packaging problems, not just offering another me-too solution. Plus they do a good job of educating the consumer about what they are doing too.

Gurland: A leader in innovation is the person or team that introduces something that makes the rest of us say, ‘Why didn’t I think of that?’ It’s that combination of creativity and commitment that takes a great idea and makes it happen.

Darby: A leader in packaging innovation is a person or company that tries something that hasn’t been done before. Not every new innovation needs to be a runaway success, but most advances in the packaging industry have been attempted in one form or another before they become globally accepted and adopted. Bio-based and biodegradable plastics have been on the cusp of mainstream adoption for the past couple of years and large-scale, worldwide rollouts appear to be right around the corner.

Brown: I think what defines a leader is someone who is always looking for innovating and trying to push the envelope. We’re in a very mature market category. For us, from a vegetable stand point, when you think of canned vegetables, they’ve been around forever, and since grocery stores have been around, I mean canned vegetables were around in the horse and buggy days. We’ve done a lot from a size standpoint, from a labeling standpoint, nutritional value, and making the cans safer, and sealing better, and sealants, from a tin plate. But when you talk about innovation in that category, it’s kind of like a double-edge sword, the consumer trusts that packaging, it’s the way their mom bought it, and there’s lots of different options in canned vegetables, but the consumer will not accept that. On the flip side, when you look at frozen vegetables, you see that you’ve got a product that yeah, the bag was flimsy prior, and now you’ve got a nice looking steam bag, that bag acts as a cooking process, it benefits the consumer cause they don’t have to mess a pot up, you can cook it in the microwave without a utensil, there’s less prep time. They see the benefit of that, so they are more apt to accept that.

So when you talk about companies who are more innovative, I think it’s the ones who are constantly looking to change the packaging to something that the consumers will accept.

Podnar: Rewarded risk by developing, manufacturing and sustaining benefits that clients want, use and profit from.

Kroening: Making a conscious choice to be an innovator and willing to make the investments to make innovation happen. It doesn’t just happen, it comes with a cost and manufacturers need to have the mindset to accept that. Encouragement and support of employees to think outside the literal box also plays a huge role.

Oxford: A co-packer leader is one that constantly evaluates the process and looks for ways to improve it. The bottling line is the most recent example of our innovation. Aseptic bag-in-box and pouch products became very popular and respected in the industry. Our leadership team acknowledged we could add individual bottles to our lineup to provide a new solution to our customers. Moving from bulk product to single-serving plastic bottles in the aseptic category was a big leap, but customers are really appreciating the advancement.

>What trends have you noticed in the world of packaging innovation?

Hines: Everything is either green or interactive/intelligent packaging. People seem to like the hype and the gimmicks revolving around this type of packaging innovation. The media love green so everybody is jumping on the eco bandwagon.

Gurland: I think we’re seeing innovation in two major directions. The first is focused on improving costs along the supply chain. The second is tying into consumer trends – for example, trying to fit into consumers’ rushed lives. We’ve has seen a huge new category of ready-to-eat products with new, convenience-oriented packaging. I have no doubt that the interest in cost efficiency on the manufacturer’s end and time efficiency on the consumer side will continue.

Darby: Packaging innovation trends are often centered on using less material (reducing costs) and improving consumer experience with the package. Packaging that is easy to use or catches the consumer’s eye is still a top priority, but today’s educated consumer wants to know how packaging is made, can it be recycled, and now, with advances in bioplastics, can it be composted or is it biodegradable. These eco-conscious consumers are driving retailers and packagers to offer new packaging materials that will meet consumer demand.

Podnar: Lighter weights, new materials, higher graphics, sustainability on all facets.

Kroening: High-end color and images, printed special effects and unique structural design.

Also, as one of the earliest adopters of eco-friendly commercial printing initiatives and one of the first to be FSC certified, MOSAIC is often asked about the effects of the environmental movement and how companies can go green.

Being environmentally friendly is a no-lose proposition. Everyone can make small, incremental changes that reduce carbon footprints; and no one views genuine environmental awareness as a negative. Even small initiatives cast companies in a better light, one that cares about the environment and its clients. I would say we are in the midst of that movement right now with next generation folding cartons establishing their many advantages over formed plastics.

Oxford: The beverage category is highly competitive, and because of that, there seems to be a strong influx of new or improved products. Staying up on consumer trends and habits is crucial to the success of the business.

Particpants in CM&P’s Innovation Roundtable



• Janelle Oxford, director of sales operations and production planning at KanPak.



• Debra Darby, director of marketing communications for Metabolix/Mirel Bioplastics.



• Dr. Rani Stern, chief executive officer of CLP Industries, a flexible packaging manufacturer headquartered in Israel and distributed worldwide.



• JoAnne Hines, known as the “packaging diva”, works as a packaging and source expert for MFG.com online marketplace.



• Jack Podnar, president and chief executive officer, the Rez-Tech Corp. a plastic jar manufacturing company.



• Kurt Kroening, vice president of Mosaic Printing.



• Leslie Gurland, President of Logotech a label manufacturing and marketing company.



• David Brown, vice president of retail sales for Allen’s Inc. a vegetable canning manufacturer.