< Previous20 Food & Drink Internationalwww.fdiforum.netPACKAGING SPOTLIGHT2018 is a tipping point, where consumersjoined government and industry to say,“enough is enough”. So far this year there hasbeen several ground-breaking and potentiallytransformative initiatives taking place in thefood and drink sector to tackle the scourge ofplastic waste. Black plastic packaging is commonplace topack foods including fresh meat and readymeals, with supermarket shelves stocked fullof it. However, this type of packaging isn’trecycled in the UK due to the carbon blackpigment within the plastic. Sorting machinesused in the recycling industry cannot detectthe trays because of this pigment, so they’retypically sent to landfill instead. Unsurprisingly,black plastic packaging has become a patsy,with supermarkets, such as Waitrose, banningit from its stores and manufacturers phasing itout. Others have taken a more proactiveapproach, tackling the issue head on rather© Shutterstock/purezba19-23.qxp_Layout 1 22/10/2018 10:46 Page 2Food & Drink International 21www.fdiforum.netPACKAGING SPOTLIGHTNEWRecyclabilityOur materials are produced using a high percentage of recycled content and are 100% fully recyclable which means they can either be transformed back into raw material or energy.• Sealable tray combininga cardboard base for rigidity witha technically sophisticated fi lm for an easier sealing• 85% minimum of our packaging stems from renewable virginor recycled resources• FSC certifi ed cardboardSERVIPACK®Eco-designThe aim of this is to design products in line with the principles of sustainable development and environmental friendliness. Each new product is subject to a full life cycle analysis, which allows quantifying and optimizing its environmental footprint.NEWLUXIFOOD®FRESHIPACK®TEL 01304 840 581 - sales@sharpakaylesham.comthan skirting around it. The Waste and Recourses ActionProgramme (WRAP) has joined with packagingmanufacturers, retailers, brands and trade associationsto form a road map to the sustainable recycling of allblack plastic packaging by the end of 2018. Animpressive aim, to be sure, but the current signs we’reseeing throughout the supply chain indicate that thisindustry-wide coalition will achieve its end goal. To put an end to this confusion and help consumerscontinue to make better, more informed purchasingdecisions, campaign group A Plastic Planet has recentlyintroduced a voluntary ‘trust mark’, which will beprominently displayed on food and beverage products,allowing consumers to more easily find sustainablealternatives. These include materials made frompaperboard and cardboard etc. The first retailers to adopt the mark is the UK’s ownfrozen food specialist, Iceland, and Dutch supermarketchain Ekoplaza. The latter made headlines earlier thisyear after introducing a plastic-free aisle. While thisinitiative, validated by major supermarkets, does providebest practice for others to follow, it isn’t enough inisolation. Enforcement is the issue here, so for it to reallyhave a lasting impact on the supply chain, it needs to bebacked by Government. Whenever challenges exist, there will be savvy mindscoming together to find solutions. That’s exactly whatwe’re witnessing in the food and drink supply chain andfurther afield, with researchers, academics and22 Á© Shutterstock/Mocha.VP19-23.qxp_Layout 1 22/10/2018 10:46 Page 322 Food & Drink Internationalwww.fdiforum.netPACKAGING SPOTLIGHTQualvis’ new pack design drivessales for Popcorn ShedLeading carton manufacturer, Qualvis, has created a fresh look for gourmetLondon-based popcorn brand, Popcorn Shed. The vibrant new packagingformat has helped drive growth for the start-up, returning a 100% increase insales compared to the same period last year.Popcorn Shed needed a pack format that would stand out from thecompetition, create fantastic shelf presence and differentiate from competitors.Its popcorn is the only kind to come in a ‘shed’ style folding box board carton. Each flavour has its own style shed and tells its own story. For example,Pecan Pie is inspired by an American barnyard, Salted Caramel is inspired bythe lights of the Brighton seafront and Pop N Choc, a fantasy log cabin in theforest. The window patch allows a subtle view of the flavours to add extra appetiteappeal and the packaging allows for double facing with the side profile acting as an alternative display option.For more information, visit www.qualvis.co.uk.packagingmanufacturers joiningforces to find better, moresustainable solutions. Some of the mostpromising developments involve bio-plastics, derived from sustainable andnatural sources. Often these are wastesources, the better to create a closedloop solution. But others are havingsuccess by using packaging to addressother challenges – such as food waste. But bioplastics is still very much anembryonic industry and far fromachieving ubiquity across the industry.So what solutions are open to foodmakers now?One packaging conceptthat has proven particularlypopular in recent years is that ofcorrugated. With a wide range ofbenefits, including an inherent flexibility,corrugated can be modified fordifferent crops and misshapen produce,thereby reducing the potential forbruising and skin damage that cansometimes occur with rigid packaging.Because over eight per cent ofcorrugated is recycled, while new boxesare made from recycled material, theenvironmental footprint is very low.Where new fibre is used, itcomes from sustainablymanaged forests. Thiscommitment to responsibleforest management has made ahuge contribution to theincrease in the size of Europe’sforests – up by thirty per centsince 1950. Although it has beenused in one form or other for manyyears, the corrugated packagingindustry is continually investing in newtechnologies to ensure it retains its toptable place.Pouch packaging has also become anincreasingly popular option over thelast few years with many of theindustry’s biggest players moving intothe sector. The lack of rigidity in thepackaging is a big selling point. Cans,cardboard and paper packaging are allvery susceptible to damage and harmbecause they need to conform to arigid shape and so cannot flex whenpressure is applied. This leads to cansbeing malformed in transit orcardboard being punctured. Pouchpackaging is typically made ofpuncture-resistant laminated film, and© Sharpak19-23.qxp_Layout 1 22/10/2018 10:46 Page 4dŚĞh<ΖƐůĞĂĚŝŶŐƉĂĐŬĂŐŝŶŐƐƵƉƉůŝĞƌƚŽƚŚĞĨŽŽĚĂŶĚĚƌŝŶŬŝŶĚƵƐƚƌLJ͕ŽīĞƌŝŶŐĂǁŝĚĞƌĂŶŐĞŽĨƉĂĐŬĂŐŝŶŐƉƌŽĚƵĐƚƐŝŶĐůƵĚŝŶŐ͗ŝƌ^ŚŽĐŬďŽƩůĞƉĂĐŬƐŽdžĞƐĨŽƌďŽƩůĞƐWĂůůĞƚǁƌĂƉΘƐLJƐƚĞŵƐ>ĂďĞůƐFood & Drink International 23www.fdiforum.netPACKAGING SPOTLIGHTmany layers of it. This allows thematerial to flex and bend, taking onwater-like properties to avoid beingdamaged. While it does not offer thesame protection to the food inside,certain foodstuffs such as soups, readymeals or rice, do not fear being jostledor malformed. They will simply flowback into shape. All of this workstogether not only to reduce the chanceof damage, but also to offer longershelf life and ensure the productremains attractive on the shelf anddoes not fade or become misshapen.Stand-up pouches can also be madefrom one hundred per cent recycledmaterials, adding an environmentalappeal to the design.Innovation is part and parcel of thefood packaging market, but recentlythe onus has been on making moreenvironmentally-friendly, easier-to-recycle packages that also still havestrong shelf appealand resonate withconsumers.© Shutterstock/Africa Studio© Shutterstock/Big Foot Productions19-23.qxp_Layout 1 22/10/2018 10:46 Page 524 Food & Drink Internationalwww.fdiforum.netFACILITIES MANAGEMENTPerhaps the biggest change, or ratheropportunity, that has come forward forfacilities management in the food anddrink industry in the last decade is theintroduction of more digitaltechnologies that gather usable data.Facilities managers are now able to gaina greater understanding of awarehouse, processing plant ordistribution facility, and the staff thatthey watch over, to better fulfil their rolein improving productivity and efficiencyand managing the costs of a facility, toultimately make sure products do notfall short of expectations and aremanufactured and delivered on time.Facility management systems (FMS)are now widely adopted by facilitiesmanagers and have had a significanteffect on how facilities management isconducted, creating a paperless digitalsystem (which optimises space) whereinformation can be shared and accessedeasily on a web-based dashboard,allowing employees to be safer by forinstance offering a list of health andsafety equipment required for a job, andimproving communication betweenstaff so that if anything, for example,breaks or spills, a facilities manager canbe contacted, staff can be made aware,and maintenance technicians notified.The data within an FMS can be usedwithin many aspects of facilitiesmanagement: technicians can access allthe information needed before leavingthe shop so they have the right toolsand parts for repairs when arriving;cleaners can see what needs to becleaned, the square footage of the areaand details on the floor type so theyhave the right equipment and chemicalsfor the job; one can see what tasks havebeen completed, are being done andare to be done by employees so onecan arrange and keep an up to dateaccurate schedule, and see where anystaff issues are occurring and can beimproved to boost productivity.The Internet of Things (IoT) – which isdefined in the BFIM’s 2018 report‘Embracing Technology to Move FMForward’ as “the network of internetconnected objects and devices thathave built-in data sensing, recording,analytics and communicationcapabilities” - is enhancing andimproving the control facilitiesmanagers can have, offering more toolsfor data collection and analysis throughimproved monitoring of food and drinkmanufacturing, production andtransportation, and cloud-based dataanalytics. With this monitoring, facilitiesmanagers can ensure products are of ahigh quality while operational efficiencyis maintained, and processes arecompliant with government regulationsin the industry. With IoT, all sorts ofVikan adds lime, brown & grey colours toits colour-coded cleaning and food-handling toolsVikan, the global leader in hygienic cleaning tools, is adding three new colours to itspioneering colour-coding system for hygienic cleaning tools.“Vikan invented the practice of using colour coding to segregate cleaning tools,” says ProductManager Jette Fruergaard. “The practice, which has now become near universal, helps facilitiesavoid cross contamination and improve hygiene in cleaning and food handling alike.” Adding three colours to its Hygiene product line means that Vikan now offers the biggest rangeof products in the most colours available anywhere.Fruergaard added: “Apart from providing more options overall, the new Lime colour can berecommended for facilities that use allergens and require especially vibrant segregation colours. TheBrown and Grey colours can be used in different applications but are popular choices in corridors andother areas where more discreet colours would be appropriate.”For more information, visit www.vikan.com. DigitaldevelopmentsAs more devices become internet-enabled, facilities managersare able to access an extraordinary amount of data on theirwarehouse, processing plant or distribution facility that can beutilised to make significant changes.24-27.qxp_Layout 1 22/10/2018 10:48 Page 1Food & Drink International 25www.fdiforum.netFACILITIES MANAGEMENTdevices that are internet enabled areable to send accurate data, quickly, tocentral monitoring services and otherdevices, which can be used to improvethe food and drink production process,to make it quicker and more reliableand to improve the performance of thebuilding itself and its staff.Particularly beneficial is how IoToffers facilities managers the chance togain a greater understanding ofequipment – whether it be conveyorbelts, fans or pumps – that must bekept up and running to ensuresuccessful food and drink productionand distribution. IoT enabled monitoringdevices like sensors can be used todiscover equipment faults that couldeasily go unseen to the human eye andWire it with pride withTeknomek’s latest modularstorage optionsTeknomek has extended its modular shelving range toallow customers to make optimal use of the storage spaceavailable to them. The hygienic units are built from 304grade stainless steel and feature wire shelving, which doesnot interrupt air circulation and prevents from dust settling.The flexible shelving is available in a range of variants tosuit different sizes and shapes of rooms. Options are 1000x 400mm to 1500 x 600mm as standard, and up to3,000mm on demand. Units can be combined as requiredand corner units can be constructed using hooks withoutneeding uprights. Each unit is supplied with four slatedwire shelves as standard but up to an additional eight canbe installed. The shelving is available in fixed and wheeled options,mobile versions are fitted with either zintec or stainlesssteel castors. Static units can support payloads of up to 600kg, while mobile variants holdup to 240kg.For more information, visit www.teknomek.co.uk.More than half a century of RoSPAsuccess for LorienGlobal engineering design and project management firm Lorien EngineeringSolutions has been recognised for continuous achievement at the highest level at theRoyal Society for the Prevention of Accidents (RoSPA) Health and Safety Awards - forthe 26th year running. The company has been presented with RoSPA’s second highly coveted Patron’sAward, as well as collecting its second Silver award for the Management Of Road Risk(MORR). Introduced last year, the Patron’s Award is conferred on organisations that haveachieved consecutive gold awards for 25 years or more. Lorien’s health and safety manager Elliot Follows received the award at the RoSPA gala dinner at the Hilton Birmingham Metropole in thesummer. He said: “This type of achievement is more than just filling in an application. It’s about recognition of a 365-day attention to the safetyrequirements of our projects, clients, staff and contractors, and ensuring we are always striving to be ‘better’.”For more information, visit www.lorienengineering.com.© Shutterstock/Aalfa Photo26 Á24-27.qxp_Layout 1 22/10/2018 10:48 Page 226 Food & Drink Internationalwww.fdiforum.netFACILITIES MANAGEMENTGet on board with a neat idea Teknomek has launched a new range of anti-microbial shadow boards developed to meet thespecific needs of the food sector. The products are made from a food grade PVC infused withBiomaster anti-bacterial silver-ion technology, which inhibits the growth of bacteria by up to99.9%. The hygienic shadow boards are easy to clean, any potential dirt traps, such as ledges, havebeen factored out of the design. Moreover, each board is fire-proof, water and chemical resistant,and the design can be tailored to include the customer’s company messages. Sue Springett, Commercial Manager at Teknomek, said: “Every detail needs to be highlyconsidered and the new range of shadow boards means there’s one less thing for hygienemanagers to worry about.”The boards are available in three sizes as standard, small, medium and large, ready to be printedin any of 12 HACCP colours with specific messaging and product labelling as required.For more information, visit www.teknomek.co.uk.notify you when a piece of machineryrequires servicing. This information canthen be used to create an effectiveplanned maintenance programme thatcan save money and prevent significantamounts of downtime for unplannedrepairs, and reduce the need for manualchecks by being a predictiveprogramme rather than reactive orpreventative. One should note however,that the cost benefits won’t beimmediate, which can make it difficultto justify the price of implementing IoTand the technology required to use it toits full capability, though the price isdecreasing as IoT ages.In addition, IoT enabled food anddrink solutions can help facilitiesmanagers make sure their facilitycomplies with food regulationorganisations and government agencies.For example, more detailed records canbe kept on how food is produced,manufactured, stored and transported,sensors can be used to monitortemperatures to make sure products arestored safely and can even help detectpathogens before a possible outbreakor recall, and IoT can be used to notifystaff that food safety inspections needto be conducted when sensor datasuggests a potential violation. With IoTwe have also reached the point where itcan not only monitor equipment andbuildings, but people. Wearabletechnology is coming to the forefront asa method of gathering data fromemployees to not just monitor theirwork but alter and improve thesurrounding work environment for staff.The idea for monitoring staff has comehand-in-hand with a shift placing higherresponsibility for facilities managers tobe concerned with employee wellnessand how a building can be altered toimpact wellness, with the topicbecoming as important as staff healthand safety concerns.Other technologies, like buildingautomation systems (BAS) are alsobeing embraced by facilities managersto improve the wider building itself. Thetech is being used, for instance, to helpimprove a food and drink facility’senergy efficiency – which can lead tomajor energy bill savings. Digitalplatforms can control lighting, heating,ventilation, aircon, and water forexample. Digital platforms can be set toalter lights to lower or higher levels asrequired in certain areas during the day,or to adjust lights in accordance withthe amount of natural light available, orwith sensors lights can automatically beturned off when no one is in a particulararea. Sensors can also be used tomeasure flow of electricity so one canunderstand the building’s energy useand optimise operations to makesavings. BAS allows a facilities managerto have complete control over a sitessystems and conditions, such as poweruse and air flow, from a single centrallocation. Tight controls like these aresplendid for the food and drink industrywhere, depending on what product oneis manufacturing, certain temperaturesand conditions must be precise. With allthis technology in our hands, thefacilities manager can take a food anddrink warehouse, processing plant ordistribution facility to the next level ofefficiency and productivity.© Shutterstock/Gorodenkoff24-27.qxp_Layout 1 22/10/2018 10:48 Page 3Take the fight to contaminants, germs and bugs! Clean welds, sealed ingresses and tough materials mean you can defeat germs with our hygienic furniture and equipment.FOODFIGHTQUALITY BY DESIGNQQUALITY THROUGH MANUFACTUREQUALITY OF SERVICET: 01603 788 833 | W: teknomek.co.uk | E: mail@teknomek.co.uk24-27.qxp_Layout 1 22/10/2018 10:48 Page 428 Food & Drink Internationalwww.fdiforum.netDEPOSITORS AND FILLINGThe depositors and fillingindustry is one known forits strict requirements,both in terms of hygiene,measurement andefficiency.There are few areas wheremeasurement and precision are morekey than in the depositing and fillingpart of the manufacturing chain.Incorrect measurements or applicationof ingredients can completely ruin thebatch, requiring a complete refit of thechain and necessitating numerouschecks to find out exactly wheresomething went wrong. It can result inproduct recalls if the fault goes farenough, and may cost a companyhundreds of thousands, perhaps evenmore. When it comes to depositors there isno one size fits all approach, fittinggiven the purpose of the equipment.Instead, a company needs to choosetheir depositor system based not onlyon what they are making, but howmuch, how often and how precise ameasurement they need. Differences intexture, viscosity and weight, forinstance, will all have a knock-on effect,ensuring that the filler required soup isdifferent one, say, used for a liquid. As always, efficiency and flexibility arekey – as is the precision both expectedand required. Another angle of import,however, and one all too many fail tothink of, is the ease at which the systemcan be maintained and, particularly, howeasy it is to clean. Build up of materialwithin the system can impede the fillingprocess, and potentially even lead tohygiene issues. Corners, edges andcrevasses are of particular issue here,and it is often the case that systems likethese try to avoid them, creating morerounded corners so that sticky foodstuffcannot cling and get lodged in place.Carefulmeasurement28-31.qxp_Layout 1 22/10/2018 11:01 Page 1www.multi-fill.comsales@multi-fill.comPhone +1 801.280.1570Fax +1 801.280.4341Building B, 4343 West 7800 SouthWest Jordan, Utah 84088 USARepresented in the UK and Ireland by:F. Jahn & Co. Ltd.Tel: 020 8977 8822Web: www.f-jahn.co.ukE-Mail: sales@f-jahn.co.ukwww.multi-fill.comsales@multi-fill.comPhone +1 801.280.1570Fax +1 801.280.43419620 South Hawley Park RdWest Jordan, Utah 84081 USARepresented in the UK and Ireland by:F. Jahn & Co. Ltd.Tel: 020 8977 8822Web: www.f-jahn.co.ukE-Mail: sales@f-jahn.co.ukFood & Drink International 29www.fdiforum.netDEPOSITORS AND FILLINGAutomated systems are becomingmore common, however, not only incleaning but also in their everyday use.The advantage of this is obvious, savingman-hours and wages, but any suchsystem needs to be paired with a goodway of monitoring the finished product,often including sensors on the depositoritself to ensure that the correctmeasurements are being input eachtime. Consumer demand has also begun toinfluence the industry, mostly on itscontinuous trend towards more healthyand wholesome food. With sugar beingincluded less and less in many products,especially the soft drinks industry inboth the UK (due to its latest tax) andaround the world. This has led to manycompanies having to rethink theirrecipes, and, as a result, invest in newfilling and depositing equipment tocater for this. The mass change of recipes aroundthe world has sparked someopportunities, however. It has not justshaken up markets, but allowed other,lesser known brands, to compete bybeing the first to adapt. It has alsosparked more innovation in the fillingindustry, both in terms of increasingautomation and providing equipment© Shutterstock/SARYMSAKOV ANDREY31 Á28-31.qxp_Layout 1 22/10/2018 11:01 Page 2Next >