Uflex, one of India’s largest end-to-end flexible packaging company has been approached by a top American grocery store, Whole Foods Market, to get special packaging solutions for its tortilla chips.
According to Whole foods Market, the packaging that they are using at present – multi-layer kraft paper institutional bags with a BOPP (Biaxially Oriented Polypropylene Films) sealant layer – have not been keeping tortilla chips safe from oxygen and moisture. As a result, the chips have been turning soggy and rancid, their shelf life reduced to barely three weeks time. Adding to the disadvantages, the paper bag was easily torn in the supply chain and in some cases, even ruptured by sharp edges of tortilla chips.
All these issues compelled Whole Foods Market to look out for an alternate packaging solution.
Engineers at Uflex designed a three layered, 12.5 micron coated Polyester / 18 micron BOPP (both sides treated) / 35 micron Polyethylene packaging structure as a 3D flat bottom pouch.
Polyester provides excellent barrier from oxygen and also exhibits good thermal resistance owing to its melting temperature that is as high as 150-160 degrees Centigrade.
BOPP acts as a strong barrier to moisture. Polyethylene (PE) serves as a sealant layer besides imparting strength and sturdiness to the pouch.
To impart a paper like organic look, special registered matte coating was applied on the glossy polyester film.
A PTC slider pocket was included to facilitate easy opening of the chips bag without using scissors or knives, which can cause contamination of the food.
Joint President Packaging (Global Exports) at Uflex Limited, Anup Sachdeva said, “For the Christmas season we dispatched 1 million new pouches to the co-packer by air. The new pouches are now on the retail shelves and I am given to understand from the client that the response has been terrific. We are getting more and more enquiries from Tortilla and other snacks brands in the United States that are still using conventional paper packaging. We are very hopeful of more business transactions fructifying in the near future.”
The transformed packaging offers clear advantages:
- Shelf life of tortilla chips increased to 90 days;
- Opening the pack is very convenient for the consumers. Small potions can now be taken out from the institutional pack and the pouch could be zipped thereafter for deferred use keeping the quality of chips absolutely intact through the prescribed shelf life;
- The 3D pouch renders a 360 degree branding canvas to the pack as it has five distinct panels. This further enhances the visibility and aesthetics of the pouch at the Point of Sale (POS).
Commenting about the success of the transformed packaging of Tortilla Chips for Whole Foods Market, Chairman and Managing Director, Uflex Limited, Ashok Chaturvedi said, “The pouch has been fabricated on a special Quad Seal Machine with a registered PTC/ Slider applicator and perforation facility. This machine has also been indigenously manufactured by our Engineering Business at the Noida Plant. Being an end-to-end multinational flexible packaging materials and solution company we offer immense ease to our clients globally. All their packaging requirements are met under one roof.”
“The revamped packaging for Tortilla Chips did not require any new or specialized filling and sealing line at the co-packer’s end. The old machine does the job. No additional Capex was a major boon for the co-packer. I am glad Uflex has been able to deliver Whole Foods Market exactly the packaging that they had been looking for,” he concluded.
