Heinz puts the squeeze on condiment packs

New SqueezMe! portion packs from Heinz Foodservice are giving Belgian and U.K. fast-food consumers a convenient and mess-free option for on-the-go condiment use. "Heinz SqueezMe! allows consumers to control exactly where they squeeze their sauce—they can put exactly the amount they want on their food, again and again," explains Andy Jordan, innovations manager for Heinz. "Designed with today's hectic schedule in mind and for people who eat on-the-move, it is the ultimate food-to-go ketchup, as there is no mess or fuss, and each convenient pack contains the perfect amount of sauce."

Holding three-times the volume of sauce as traditional sachets, the packs are being offered in Belgium in a 26-mL (0.89-oz) size for Frites Sauce (sweet mayonnaise), Curry Gewurz (curry ketchup) and Ketchup. In the U.K., the packs are being used for Tomato Ketchup, Brown Sauce, Barbecue Sauce, Mayonnaise, Salad Cream and Tartare Sauce at a cost of 15 pence (17 cents) per pack versus the 10-pence (26-cent) cost of sachet portion packs.

In selecting the material for the Heinz-designed pack, the company worked with film supplier RPC Cobelplast (www.cobelplast.be) and film converter Bastin & Co. NV, both of Belgium. Heinz' goal, Jordan says, was to find a film construction that would allow for a high-quality print finish without compromising the product's nine-month shelf life, as well as one that would perform well on Heinz' continuous-band form/fill/seal equipment. The resulting structure is a lamination of high-barrier, coextruded polystyrene/ethyl vinyl alcohol/polyethylene.

The SqueezMe! portion pack features the distinctive keystone shape used by Heinz for its labels. At the bottom of the pack is a simple, twist-and-tear opening device that consumers snap back and tear off to access the product. Graphics include the trademark Heinz logo and colors, flexo-printed on two sides in six colors.