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The ‘drop-in film replacement’ has enabled the Savory Division to achieve greater barrier stability and produce a better consumer product that upholds the company’s mission to add vitality to life. The change has also allowed Unilever, one of the world’s largest consumer goods companies, to improve brand equity, create an aesthetically superior package, and gain significant production savings.

“Toray Plastics told us that they had a product that would meet or exceed all of our technical specifications,” says Michael Hughes, Group Manager, Packaging Technology, Unilever Foods NA of Englewood Cliffs, NJ. But the proof was in the package. “In a six month trial, the pouches made with Toray’s metallized barrier OPP Torayfan® PC1 film outperformed a control group of regular PPFP packaging in delivering a better food product because of their superior moisture and oxygen barrier protection properties,” he says. “It became apparent that by making a switch we would be able to not only achieve improved brand equity, but significant economic advantages as well.”

The renowned Knorr and Lipton culinary innovations have been presented to North American consumers for over three decades in sealed pouches made of Paper-Polyethylene-Foil-Polyethylene (PPFP). Unilever first adopted Torayfan® PC1 film for its sealed and printed packaging of Lipton side dishes and soups; it then transitioned its Knorr brand. “This was not a decision made in haste, especially with Knorr, which was first introduced in 1838 and today is our biggest selling brand,” states Hughes. “Both the Knorr and Lipton brands have an image of quality that is known and trusted by consumers, and maintaining that image is one of our top priorities.”

Punctures Prevented, Customers Confident
By changing from foil to metallized OPP, Unilever was able to achieve a number of performance improvements. “Better puncture resistance was very important to us because many of the Knorr and Lipton products contain freeze-dried noodles, which have very sharp edges,” says Hughes. The danger of puncturing is especially severe when the pouches are compressed as they are placed inside shipping cartons. “According to the feedback we’ve gotten from retailers who unpack the cartons, the problem of punctured pouches has been practically eliminated.”

The new packages also offer increased shelf life. “Some of the punctures that used to occur with foil were so tiny that even the fine powders inside the pouch were unable to get out, but air and moisture were able to get in, shortening the shelf life of the product. Testing has shown that this problem does not occur with the new Torayfan® PC1 film.”

Improved consumer appeal was another benefit that Unilever was able to achieve. “The problem with foil is that creases or wrinkles that occur during handling are permanent,” says Hughes. “The pouches are handled by automated equipment when they are packed into cartons, then by stock clerks when they are taken out and put on the shelf, and finally by consumers who pick them up to examine them and read the ingredients. With all this handling, they can quickly appear to look shopworn. With plastic film, however, creases and wrinkles are temporary, the pouch quickly regains its fresh appearance, and graphics stay sharp and clear.”

Production Advantages Realized
Unilever was also able to achieve a number of internal production benefits by changing to the metallized OPP. “One of our biggest concerns was whether the new pouches would be able to run at the same speed as the old ones on our high-speed filling equipment,” Hughes notes. Unilever uses a number of different form and fill machines, including Bartelts, Bosch Sigpacks, and high speed Joneses. “We found that with just a few simple modifications, we were able to operate all of the machines at their maximum speeds.”

Another benefit was improved sealing performance. “Because Torayfan® PC1’s corona treated surface accepts sealants so readily, we were actually able to reduce the amount of sealant required to achieve the same bond strength,” Hughes explains. “We’re talking about hundreds of millions of pouches being sealed, so this translates to a significant economic benefit.”

Benefits To The Converter
Unilever’s converter, American Packaging of Rochester, NY, reports benefits as well, and anticipates potential cost reductions and efficiency improvements as a result of the change. “As you would expect with any change from something we have been doing for a long time, we went through a learning curve,” says Larry Webb, Technical Director, American Packaging. “The transition was relatively easy, however, and our operators were able to learn the new procedures pretty quickly. We are now up to the same level of efficiency as we were with foil and expect to see further improvements as we get more familiar with the process.”

American Packaging uses a tandem lamination process, with two extruders positioned in line, one after the other. “The first step is extrusion lamination and the second is extrusion coating,” says Webb. Although the 2-step process requires higher precision and more attention to detail than simple foil lamination, it does offer several advantages. “For one thing, because it is only 50-gauge in thickness, it delivers more square feet per pound. For another, because of Toray’s proprietary ultra high surface energy (UHSE) and their advanced metallizing technology, we don’t have to worry about the metal delaminating from the OPP film during high temperature extrusion,” says Webb.