With a variety of different aluminum bottles arriving in the market, we decided to look at Sprite’s 250 ml aluminum bottle.

Initial Impressions

This package looks cool, which is why it exists, namely to target younger demographics. However, the poor usability of small and micro portion sizes is a disadvantage. In addition, the higher use of materials in respect to the amount of product packed and the cost of the package form rather large obstacles.

Smaller package sizes, driven by a desire to reduce calorie count, create issues for packaging. Smaller packages are more difficult to handle in adult hands, and they are also more difficult to open and reclose. In addition, drinking from smaller openings forces adults to suck the product from the opening, rather than sip or pour into the mouth, and that is one of the most important issues that make smaller packages unsuitable for adults.

All of these issues were apparent when we tested the package.

Aluminum Can vs. Bottle

Aluminum cans, aside from being cool packages (largely attributable to the opening crack), are notoriously poor in usability. They also are not reclosable and they do not pour well. The lip contact area is anything but suitable for lip contact. In comparison to aluminum cans, this aluminum bottle provides better usability in almost all areas. While it did not open easily, it pours better, and it recloses. It has a well defined and rounded lip contact area. As a drink-from package, it does better than an aluminum can.
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More than any other liquid food segment, wine is tightly linked to glass packaging. This resistance to change is a combination of strong consumer attachment to glass packaging and necessary product protection. Today, about 20 billion wine bottles are manufactured and sold, mainly in the 750 mL format.
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Cup-o-jay, designed by Ken Gruhl, a student at the Michigan State University, was the winner of the 2010 Flexible Packaging Student Design Challenge. We have taken a detailed look at this concept.

The novelty of this concept is not in the package format itself, as this type of package has been used with single serve yogurt packages and many other foods. Instead, the novelty lies in the application of this type of packaging to frozen juice.
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We had covered Sun Chips compostable chip package on April 25, 2010. You can find the review here. The advertisement for the package started airing in the US this week. It provides us with additional information regarding its compost rate.

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Tropicana offers its products in a variety of package formats around the world. Here in the US, larger packages with handles are quite prevalent in the market. Between the ½ gallon and one gallon sizes, Tropicana has this oddly sized HDPE package.

Apart from its odd capacity, there is nothing unusual about the package. The closure, however, is a flip-cap instead of the usual screw cap. While that alone is rather new and innovative, the real innovation is somewhat invisible to the consumer. The flip-cap is actually resealable, instead of being merely recloseable. That means that the package can be stored in the fridge, once opened, on its side, without leakage.

Why would you need a flip-cap? It is typically easier to open and it also delivers better distribution efficiency due to its lower cap height. Arguably, it can be made using less plastic than a screw cap, depending on the design and size.
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There are two methods of implementing tamper prevention devices on food packaging. One method is to provide evidence when the package barrier is broken. The other method is to tamper proof the package. While these two methods may seem similar, they are indeed quite different.
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In our previous article, Minimalist packaging: Bahlsen Hit cookies, we evaluated a traditional petit beurre package that had not kept up with the times.

Today, we ran a similar package usability analysis on the current Oreo cookie package in the US market. The results are drastically different. The Oreo package not only surpasses Bahlsen type packages, it establishes a new benchmark in package usability for its category.

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The Wall Street Journal has an article on plastic cork closures in today’s edition. There are some rather interesting industry facts that are revealed in the article.

Cork was first used as a bottle closure by Dom Perignon in the late 1600s. Natural cork still has a 69% market share today, but that market share is being eroded by competitors. In certain markets such as Australia, screw caps are now dominating the market. In others, synthetic closures are making inroads. That certainly brings up the question as to why. The short answer is package functionality and usability.

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Brand X (via Gizmodo) is showing a beer-in-a-box concept by Thomas Hussey. This concept has an unusual pump feature that keeps air out to prevent oxidation.

We like the concept, but we also recognize that there are fundamental issues with it. The reason why wine-in-a-box exists today is because it saves cost. In fact, it saves a lot of cost.

Wine, and in general alcohol, do not need all the protection that an absolute barrier like glass offers. Therefore, from a packing point-of-view, wine can be packed in a bag-in-a-box, and even in regular, smaller carton packages. Creating a bit of a moral hazard, it can even be found in some countries in kiddie sized carton packages that normally pack Hi-C, or similar juice drinks. In other countries, even hard liquor like rum can be found in 250ml cartons.
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Sun Chips brand, as well as a host of other branded chips, are in the process of switching over to a new biodegradable multi-layered packaging material.

This material has a more attractive matte finish, which helps it stand out at the POP. However, we discovered that when it comes to sensory appeal, the downside may be bigger than the upside.
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