20g PET bottle hits above its weight

A lightweight PET milk bottle has won recognition in the World Beverage Innovation Awards in Nuremberg.

At this year's BrauBeviale, the product from filling and packaging specialist KHS GmbH won in the Best Environmental Sustainability Initiative category.

Its low weight, and the related material savings, won the judges over.

KHS has been working on a number of sustainable product systems and solutions, and the PET bottle, made for milk and mixed milk beverages, was developed ready for the market and tested at the KHS site in Hamburg.

In contrast to the traditional beverage carton, material usage and energy consumption of the ultra-lightweight PET bottle has been reduced considerably.

With a thread diameter of 32 millimetres, the bottle weighs only 20g. KHS says PET bottles of the same size commonly found on the market generally tilt the scales at 22g.

The bottle can be aseptically filled; it protects the product, reduces production costs, and is fully recyclable.

Its FlipBase base reliably compensates the negative pressure created in the bottle during filling of the warm beverage.

KHS offers two versions with UV light barriers: a transparent bottle that is covered after filling with a protective sleeve, and a white bottle with a reliable light guard made of titanium dioxide.

At the retail level, the newly developed bottle scored highly with judges due to its convincing handling. An intermittent rib structure, for example, ensures easy-to-grip stability.