Bornholms has produced and developed canned fish products in Nexoe on the east coast of the island of Bornholm, Denmark since 1915.
Not any more.
RPC Superfos has developed a series of four types of packaging for Bornholms with an entirely new oxygen barrier solution. The innovation, plastic packaging with up to two years shelf life at ambient temperatures, won Superfos a Worldstar award in November last year. The latest version gives Bornholms seafood three years shelf life.
Christian Sieverts, managing director of Bornholms, described the benefits: “The conversion allows us to increase the filling speed, reduce the cost of the packaging material and optimise logistics.
“Another very positive effect is the reduced carbon footprint. According to our estimates, we will save more than 200,000 km by truck every year, which in part is due to the location of the RPC Superfos Distribution Center, but also closely linked to the shape of the packaging. Before, our packaging was straight-sided; now thanks to the new design, we work with a conical shape and can put a significant amount of extra units on each truck.
“The improved stacking facility also means that the empty pots only demand up to 30 per cent of the warehouse space that was previously required.”
The can's alternative is a coinjection-moulded container with one oxygen barrier layer coinjected into its sidewall and a second oxygen barrier layer in the coextruded in-mould label that is applied during the coinjection moulding process.
The extra shelf life will benefit Borholms as well as its end-users because the company exports to overseas market. This entails time-consuming transport by ship and sometimes lengthy clearance through customs. Increased ambient temperature shelf life allows Borholms to keep its quality assurance high.
When the new plastic packaging packaging was trialled in the catering segment, responses were enthusiastic. The containers were reported to be hassle-free to open, and it was easy to get the content out and put the lid back on. Current research has flagged all three of these features as important to consumers.
Sieverst said of the investment, “We went all-in on this conversion. The decision ensures continuous development, up to date production facilities and long term benefits. We are confident about getting a good return on investments.”
Four formats are in use already:
• 200g rectangular for cod roe or other spreadable fish products
• 200g round for mussels or shrimp
• 400g round for mussels or fish dumplings
• 600g rectangular for foodservice or catering
