Bringing innovation to bag-in-box

Research shows boxed wine sales are strong and future growth prospects look promising. In the U.S. alone, sales of 3-L boxes of wine have grown at double-digit rates year-after-year since 2003 and total U.S. consumption from the box, including both 3- and 5-L formats, is more than 20 percent by volume (source: AC Nielsen Scantrack Data).

This momentum among consumers and retailers alike comes as no surprise, given the environmental, cost and taste benefits of boxed wines. Unfilled bags in bag-in-box (B-I-B) wine packaging require up to 88 percent less storage space than bottles, making them much more economical to warehouse and ship. Boxed wines also are lighter than bottled wines, less prone to breakage and easier to transport.

Perhaps most importantly, B-I-B packaging minimizes the product oxidation that occurs when conventional bottles are opened. B-I-B wine can stay fresh for as long as six weeks after opening versus two to three days for bottled wine.

As a worldwide supplier of bags for the wine industry with manufacturing locations on five continents, Scholle Packaging's products are sold in more than 60 countries and include flexible films, fitments and caps, bags and filling equipment for the food, beverage and industrial markets.

To keep the company at the forefront of bringing flexible packaging technology and trends to life, Scholle has deployed significant resources in the areas of research and development and packaging innovation. So when it decided to place the ethylene vinyl acetate (EVA) based film, it had been using in its B-I-B packaging for wine with a new and improved film, Scholle needed a supplier with the capabilities and knowledge to formulate a distinct product that would meet its customers' needs with breakthrough technology for the B-I-B wine industry. As a global company, Scholle also needed uniformity of resins across geographies.

Bagging material improvements

With 14 manufacturing locations for PE in four continents, the Dow Chemical Co. was the perfect fit. Additionally, the companies could hit the ground running as Dow as a long-time materials supplier for Scholle.

"Dow is Scholle Packaging's No. 1 supplier because they really understand the flexible packaging industry and have a tremendous product portfolio," David Bellmore, manager of global product development, Scholle Packaging, remarks. "Their multi-source capability [for PE] both in North America and other continents enhance the security of supply that our customers value immensely."

Anand Sundaresan, senior North American market manager, food and specialty packaging at Dow adds: "As the largest PE producer in the world, we knew we could develop a resin with our strong polymer and material science expertise. Collaboration really adds value by getting it right the first-time, accelerating the speed to market and helping our customers rapidly achieve success in the marketplace. Effective collaboration was really the key to successful innovation in this case."

Scholle outlined three specific requirements of the new film it sought to develop: 1) The new film needed to have improved strength for better puncture and flex-crack resistance which is crucial for maintaining package integrity to prevent leakage; 2) It should allow for faster sealability; and 3) It must deliver improved organoleptic properties for freshness, taste and odor.

This last requirement was especially important to Scholle, as it looked to appeal to higher-end and more specialty wine producers.

Dow listened to Scholle's specifications to identify a variety of ideas to match Scholle's vision. The materials supplier then produced various films in its fabrication facility, and then presented important findings and suggestions to Scholle for consideration.

The result of the collaboration was Scholle FlexiTech, a single-layer, PE, non-barrier film that offers strong seals and robust package performance. Dow's in-house reseach and development group designed a resin for Scholle based on Dow's catalyst, process and product know-how that met Scholle's key requirements and requests.

The new film, which serves as the wine contact layer in B-I-B packaging, offers durability and flex crack resistance. Additionally, FlexiTech allows for consistent sealability which ensures the high-quality of Scholle's bags. It also helps to provide optimal taste and odor properties of the wine.

"The B-I-B wine industry is an important market for Scholle-one in which we routinely have seen double-digit growth year-after-year," says Bellmore. "The distinct material that Dow created with Scholle's vision and guidance enabled us to meet the needs of wine manufacturers and vintners looking to capitalize on the benefits of B-I-B packaging without compromising the quality of their product."

Tapping innovations for dispensing

Scholle says its innovation and leadership in the boxed wine marketplace does not end with films alone. The company designs and sells dispensing taps, too. Chief among its fitments is FlexTap, an ergonomically-designed spigot that offers push button dispensing of low-viscosity liquids and features easy-on, automatic-off functionality and flow rate control. Unlike standard closures found on conventional bottles and rigid packaging containers that allow product-degrading oxygen to enter the container each time the cap is removed, FlexTap's positive flow design blocks oxygen from entering the package, preserving and prolonging the product's life. Equally important, FlexTap is easy to use.

FlexTap's applicability extends beyond the wine industry to also include the water, health drink and juice markets where consumers appreciate its easy-to-use, stay fresh design. With FlexTap, Scholle also saw an opportunity to meet a need in the edible oil packaging marketplace, particularly among consumers and food-service operators using cooking oils. This was because the tap enables easy, clean dispensing of oils.

Prior to launching into the edible oil market, Scholle's Global Technology Laboratory conducted a series of pre-commercialization tests to ensure a smooth transition into the edible oil market. This early testing revealed a challenge: Over time, the edible oils would begin to migrate through the soft push-button of the FlexTap.

To overcome this potential problem, Scholle again collaborated with Dow. "Dow offers nearly every product in the polyolefin industry and has a variety of grades to select from, so we knew they would be able to help us find a material that offered the density we needed to help eliminate oil migration from the tap without sacrificing ease of use," says Bellmore.

In another very collaborative process, Scholle defined the modulus properties of the existing push-button and the level of flexibility that it sought to keep. Dow presented Scholle with samples from its product portfolio, and together they helped identify the grade that had the right density and melt index to meet Scholle's needs. Scholle then conducted injection molding trials and lab testing.

"What we found was that using denser materials made the button harder to push but provided a better barrier," Bellmore recalls. "Ultimately, Dow and Scholle together identified the sweet spot that presented the right density with effective oil barrier resistance.

"Dow has continually proven its value to Scholle beyond that of resin supplier," Bellmore adds. "They work hard to understand their customers' business challenges and bring back novel ideas that help drive business growth."

"Collaborative innovation between Scholle and Dow is continually driving innovation in the B-I-B packaging industry and identifying opportunities to meet the unique needs of its customers with opportunities that are desirable, economically competitive and sustainable. This constant innovation can be seen in our ever-expanding Dowlex, Elite and Attaneportfolio," says Sundaresan.

Bellmore notes that investments in research and development have enabled Dow to innovate across market segments to create packaging solutions for applications from wine to edible oils.

About this article's authors:

Rachael Hopkins is the value chain manager for packaging sustainability at The Dow Chemical Co. Dowlex, Elite, and Attane are trademarks of The Dow Chemical Co.

Katie Scarpelli is the global marketing communications manager, wine & spirits.

Diane Chewning is the global marketing communications manager, food and beverage for Scholle Packaging.