JOLT cola, the original energy-booster soda ahead of its time when first introduced in 1985, is being revamped by Wet Planet with help from Rexam Beverage Can North America (www.rexam.com) to give the cola even more exhilarating taste in a resealable, 23.5-oz aluminum bottle, what may be a first for cola. Rexam's innovative Battery Bottle® can give the cola a new charge—the package has many of the benefits an aluminum can has, such as freshness, recyclability, superior carbonation retention, filling economics and shelf stability and it chills quickly. And because it's resealable, consumers can experience the distinctive taste and energy boost of JOLT at their own pace. According to Wet Planet, the results really "pop."

Available exclusively through Rexam, the new JOLT Battery Bottle is made possible by using Rexam's Monster(tm) can body, which is produced and printed on one of Rexam's high-speed canmaking lines and then transforming it into a resealable container with Cap Can(tm) closure technology by seaming on a Cap Can end and closure developed by Dayton Systems Group, Inc. (DSG), Miamisburg, OH. DSG developed the Cap Can's patented concept, including the forming process and equipment technology to manufacture the Cap Can closure assembly. ARCO Aluminum (www.bp.com) is the single-source supplier of coil aluminum sheet for production of the dome and decorated cap components of the Battery Bottle. Finished bottles are shipped for Jolt to Pri-Pak, an independent beverage copacker located in Lawrenceburg, IN, where they're filled with the cola product. Rexam partnered with Pri-Pak to develop a unique and flexible filling process for this exclusive package. Wet Planet also worked with Rexam's Graphic Art and Printing Plate Operation in Elk Grove Village, IL, to set the color and graphic tolerances for perfect brand reproduction on the JOLT Battery Bottle. Rexam has a company-owned, integrated graphic arts and printing plate operation, complete with a manufacturing pilot line. The JOLT Battery Bottle is currently on shelves in convenience stores and independent retailers throughout the country. Circle No. 322.

New container 'houses' cocoa

Nestl? USA has introduced a new plastic container shaped like a little house with a mansard roof for its Toll House cocoa. The dark brown, 8-oz high-density polyethylene container includes a snap-top lid for easy access and a plastic wraparound stretch label in traditional Nestl? yellow with a Nestl? Toll House Cocoa logo on the front and recipes for brownies and frosting on the back. A flavor-fresh foil seal across the top of the container ensures freshness and provides tamper-evidency.

Plastic for POMegranate

POM Wonderful, the California-based grower and marketer of fresh pomegranates and pomegranate juice, is shifting from glass bottles to polyethylene terephthalate for its popular and healthful POM Wonderful pomegranate fruit juice, with help from Graham Packaging (www.grahampackaging.com). The custom PET bottle clearly displays the refrigerated juice, which takes its name from the variety of pomegranates called "Wonderful," which the company grows exclusively and uses to produce a juice it says is higher in antioxidants than any other beverage. Antioxidants are important in fighting disease. The bottle echoes the look of a pomegranate, including the distinctive "crown" on the fruit, which is featured at the bottle's neck.

The container features multiple bulb shapes that resemble actual pomegranates balanced one on top of another. These shapes weren't the easiest to recreate in plastic or to mold, says Graham's Ashok Suda, executive vp of the global food and beverage business, who admits that the PET version was difficult to design. "But the fruit's growing popularity and the health benefits of this first-ever refrigerated pomegranate juice made the bottle an attractive challenge," he says.

Portable and totable, the bottle is a great fit for retail and wholesale outlets that don't allow glass on their shelves due to safety and breakage issues. POM Wonderful pomegranate juice is available in five flavors: 100-percent pomegranate juice, cherry, blueberry, mango and tangerine. Circle No. 323.

OxiClean stain fighter goes liquid

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OrangeGlo Intl. has extended its popular OxiClean stain fighter line with a new OxiClean Dual StainFighter liquid in a custom, easy-pour bottle designed with help from Berlin Packaging (www.berlinpackaging.com). The new product may be the first liquid oxygen-powered laundry booster and pretreatment on the market. Berlin's Studio One Eleven design division created, sourced and delivered the custom package for the product within a tight time frame, taking it from concept to store shelves in a mere 12 weeks. OrangeGlo says it wanted a custom bottle that could clearly distinguish its product from the oblong packages of its competitors. Already familiar with Berlin's packaging expertise, OrangeGlo approached Studio One Eleven, which performed a side-by-side evaluation of laundry stain remover packages on the market. OrangeGlo wanted to deliver a package that would enable consumers to pour the product directly onto stains without spilling.

The iridescent/pearlescent royal blue bottle is extrusion/blow-molded of high-density polyethylene by Monarch Plastics (www.monarch-plastics.com) using molds from R and D Tools. Sizes include 42, 64 and 96 oz. The bottle is produced with an in-mold impact finish to eliminate spin trimming. A special blow pin was utilized to blow the bottle at the proper tolerances while simultaneously creating a groove on the inside dimension of the neck finish to hold the spout in place.

Topping the bottle is a metallic gold "Gore-Tex" venting closure, selected to accommodate the oxygen released by the product. The right side of the bottle is shaped like one side of an hourglass, with a narrowing in the middle that produces a gentle curve. A slim handle on the left side of the bottle is just 5/8-in. thick. The pressure-sensitive labels, made of high-tensile-strength biaxially oriented polypropylene and flexo-printed by Lithoflex (www.lithoflexcorp.com), feature graphics that were designed by OrangeGlo's in-house marketing department. Circle No. 324.

Wine pack tailored just for the fridge

CRP Print and Packaging (www.crpprint.co.uk) in the U.K. has won accolades for the design of its point-of-sale display and packaging. For boxed wine launched by wine importer Constellation UK this winter, CRP came up with a space-efficient pack that can be stored in the refrigerator door, to chill the red and white wine easily, at any time. The wine pack's substrate is FR?VI Light from Sweden's carton board manufacturer, AssiDomn Fr?vi (www.asdo.se). The 250-gsm liner is litho-laminated to single-face corrugated board to provide strength and a sharp printing surface. Constellation, a global wine retailer whose market-leading brands include Hardy's, Banrock Station and Stowells of Chelsea, worked with CRP at its design center, which is considered the largest of its kind in the U.K.

"Using Fr?vi as the top liner produces significantly stronger wine boxes, according to CRPs operations director Tom Lindop. "This is important, as the finished product is placed directly on a pallet and distributed throughout Europe. Fr?vi grades also offer excellent printability and resistance to cracking." Circle No. 325.

'Oxygen' water in cans is a breath of fresh air

Health-conscious consumers concerned about lugging their 12-oz glass bottles of hiOsilver Oxygen Water into fitness arenas where breakage is a concern can breath a sigh of relief. Last fall, Palo Alto, CA-based hiOsilver launched its oxygen- and magnesium-enriched water product in a 16-oz aluminum can that offers the portability and safety of plastic, but with increased barrier properties.

"We decided to add cans so that our customers could take hiOsilver Oxygen Water to the gym, swimming pool, tennis court and other places where our water in a glass bottle is not permitted or desirable," explains Howard Hoffman, founder and president of hiOsilver.

"We are focused on delivering maximum oxygen concentration, so packaging choice is a big concern," he adds. "Plastic does not have an adequate oxygen barrier, and consumers have indicated that glass lacks the convenience and flexibility they desire."

Streamlined and stylish, the new cans are produced and decorated by Rexam Beverage Can Americas (BCA) (www.rexam.com) at its Winston-Salem, NC, plant and filled by the Seven-Up Bottling Co. in Modesto, CA. According to Hoffman, Rexam worked closely with hiOsilver to adapt the company's icy-crisp light-blue and aquamarine graphics and bright-red lettering to the can. Color and graphic tolerances were set by Rexam BCA at its Graphic Art and Printing Plate Operation in Elk Grove Village, IL.

In a 16-oz portion, the canned water offers consumers 10 times the pure oxygen content of regular water as well as added magnesium for immune system and cardiovascular health.

hiOsilver is available in retail locations in select states (see www.hiosilver.com) in single cans, priced from $1.29 to $1.99, depending on location. Hoffman says that a four-pack version will be introduced within the next two months. A case of 24 16-oz cans can be purchased through the hiOsilver website. Circle No. 326.

Milk joins juice in a new blended beverage for kids

While it may sound odd to hear your children ask for an ice-cold glass of "muice," or some "jilk" with their cookies, Dallas-based Dean Foods Co. hopes its new low-fat milk and fruit-juice beverage creation will soon be on the tip of kids' tongues—literally. Launched last fall in three upper Midwest markets, Land O Lakes® 80 'N Sunny(tm) in four fruit blends is said to contain as much calcium as an 8-oz glass of milk and as much Vitamin C as an 8-oz glass of orange juice, with only 80 calories per serving.

"Our research told us that kids love the refreshing taste," says Dave Haley, director of marketing for Dean Foods. "And besides tasting great, our new product helps address two critical issues with today's kids: obesity and a shortage of calcium."

Haley adds that the product was two years in the making, as Dean Foods worked to soften the acidic taste of orange juice while lowering the amount of calories and fat in the final product.

Like a Dreamsicle, but easier to pour into a glass, 80 'N Sunny comes in Orange Cr?me, as well as in Strawberry Banana, Blue Raspberry and Fruit Punch flavors in a half-gallon gabletop carton. Selected for its barrier properties and resistance to flavor scalping, the carton is made from International Paper's(www.ipbeveragepackaging.com) Tru-Taste Gold(tm) barrier board, which uses IP's patented Barrier-Pak® technology. Comprising multiple high-performance polymers, including a thin contact layer of low-density polyethylene, the technology is said by the company to retain up to 15-percent more Vitamin C.

Carton graphics—designed by Wencel/Hess (www.wencelhess.com) to convey "refreshment, fun and fruit," according to Haley—include bright background colors and large, fruit illustrations, along with a sunglass-wearing cartoon sun giving kids a thumb's up. IP prints the cartons in five-color, high-definition flexo. Caps, the IP Fresh Cap style, are colored to complement package graphics. Circle No. 327

Bulk-packed gel is a Big Shot

Giving endurance athletes a bigger bang for their buck, Clif Bar, Inc., Berkeley, CA, has introduced its CLIF SHOT® carbohydrate energy gel in an 18-oz inverted container aptly named BIG SHOT(tm). Formulated to provide runners, bikers and other long-distance athletes with a quick "shot" of energy, the gel is traditionally packaged in a 1.1-oz packet that contains 100 calories and 24 grams of simple and complex carbohydrates, along with a performance-based combination of electrolytes that helps prevent muscle cramps and loss of coordination (see PD, July '01, p.4, or go to www.packagingdigest.com/News/0701news.php).

BIG SHOT, in Razz Sorbet(tm) and Mocha Mocha(tm) varieties, allows users to economically fill gel flasks, available at sporting goods stores, with five to six portions of the gel at a cost of 85 cents per serving versus the $1.25 suggested retail price per single-serve gel packet.

Available in a polypropylene container from an unnamed supplier, BIG SHOT stands on its head, creating what Clif Bar calls a Gravity-Fed Container(tm) that allows the gel to settle inside the spout via gravity for easy dispensing.

A full-body, shrink-sleeve label, gravure-printed and converted by Ameri-Seal, Inc. (www.ameri-seal.com), provides plenty of room for Clif Shot's vibrant graphics, with a magenta background for Razz Sorbet and brown for Mocha Mocha. Ameri-Seal says it specified a polyethylene terephthalate glycol film for the application, because it provided the high shrinkability of 75 percent to 85 percent needed to snugly shrink onto the container's narrow shoulder. Circle No. 328.