Here are short descriptions of the Silver Award winners in the Flexible Packaging Assn.'s 2012 Flexible Packaging Achievement awards competition.

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Schwan's Fresch Taste-Seal Packaging for Freshchetta Simply Inspired...Pizza
Manufacturer: Curwood Inc., A Bemis Co.
Award: Packaging Excellence
Schwan's Fresch Taste-Seal packaging for Freschetta Simply...Inspired Pizza redefines the frozen pizza category, taking it out-of-the-box and directly onto the store shelf with a squared base that adds stability for on-end, in-case display and a curving top that creates a new iconic look. Eye-catching graphics communicate a sensory appeal to the consumer and a prominent easy-grab tab calls attention to the peel-open feature. Plus, the package uses 30 percent less material than other frozen pizza packages.

Swanson Flavor Boost Portion-Control Sachet
Manufacturer: Curwood Inc., A Bemis Co.
Awards: Packaging Excellence, Environmental & Sustainability Achievement
Swanson's Flavor Boost Sachets redefine a traditional retail category, delivering liquid broth in convenient, single-use premeasured portions. The sachets are simple to store, use and dispose of, with easy-tear features, directed dispensing and leak-free seals. Offering a premium look and feel, Curwood's high-performance laminate protects broth for up to one year with no flavor scalping. Eight individual liquid sachets replace the equivalent of four traditional metal cans. The packages generate more than 75 percent fewer emissions to produce than cans, consume half the overall energy of cans, dramatically increase the product-to-package ratio and minimize packaging material in the waste stream. All, while making it easier for consumers to store, use and enjoy this new kitchen essential.

Beneful Discovery Pack
Manufacturer: Printpack Inc.
Award: Packaging Excellence
By using a consumer friendly and environmentally conscious packaging platform with strong shelf presence, the Beneful brand creates an opportunity at the point of purchase to increase exposure of their new flavors to the dog-owning consumer. Offering a multi-pack with several different flavors is a great way to draw in new customers as well. Post sale, the strength and size of the package encourage the consumer to reuse it in any number of ways.

Bengay Zero Degrees
Manufacturer: Printpack Inc.
Award: Packaging Excellence
Packaging Bengay Zero Degrees in a new flexible stand-up pouch gives this product even more flexibility. Replacing a paperboard folding carton, the pouch lets users pop the entire package into the freezer for optimal product storage conditions. Maintaining the entire package for storage allows for multiple branding moments with the consumer. The lifelike ice cubes printed on the pouch are complimented by the high-gloss finish, making the entire package a reflection of the product's name.

Easysnap Sachet Pouch
Manufacturer: Ampac
Awards: Packaging Excellence, Technical Innovation
Easysnap unit-dose packaging is designed with two high-barrier films-a flexible top web (a PET/foil lamination) and a semi-rigid bottom web (a lamination using foil and PS). The Easysnap package was developed for single-handed dispensing using a sachet format, and meets FDA requirements for direct contact packaging of applicable foods, drugs and cosmetics. Benefits include accurate product dosing which eliminates product overfill, controlled dispensing to avoid accidental spills, lower costs vs bottles and tubes, and improved image quality vs wrinkled and hard to open sachets.

Pocket Shots Stand-Up Pouch in Amcor's Alcohol-Compatible Laminate
Manufacturer: Amcor Flexibles Europe & Americas
Award: Environmental & Sustainability Achievement
Pocket Shots stand-up pouch is an example of further penetration of flexible packaging into areas previously limited to rigid containers. The laminate is compatible with alcoholic beverages. The single portion package is easy to open, unbreakable (compared to glass) and takes up less space when empty vs rigid packages. The pouch reduces packaging weight by approximately 50 percent, thereby delivering significant lifecycle impact improvements.

Bag 2 Bag Plastic Retail Carryout Bag
Manufacturer: Hilex Poly Co. LLC
Award: Environmental & Sustainability Achievement
The "Bag 2 Bag" recycled plastic retail carryout bag is made in the USA from post-consumer plastic bags—HDPE, LDPE and LLDPE flexible packaging films and wraps from the household. Using reverse logistics, the company recovers plastic returned by the consumer and cleans and recycles it back into raw material for making new bags. Compared to conventional bags, the Bag 2 Bag requires 20 percent less energy to produce, lowers carbon emissions by 11 percent, diverts millions of pounds from landfills each year and provides sustainability conscious consumers a closed-loop carryout package.

Tesco Finest Soups Retort Pouch
Manufacturer: Ampac
Award: Printing Achievement
The Tesco Finest Soups Retort Pouch printed with flexographic printing technology is an achievement both technically and graphically. Flexo printing has generally not been successful for retort pouches because of cost and the ability to survive the demanding retort process. Ampac has developed a flexographically printed retort pouch that is fit for use and also imparts a range of matte and high process printed graphics that meet the brand requirements and provide shelf appeal.

Land of Sybaris
Manufacturer: Flex America Inc. [http://flexamericainc.com/]
Award: Printing Achievement
The pet food package is supplied as a pre-made bag for filling and closing by the end-user. It is made from a BOPP/metallized BOPP/LDPE film laminate that is reverse printed by rotogravure. The bag has a flat bottom stand-up construction and is made from four separate laminate webs. It is supplied with a slider zipper on top for reclosability (the bag contains multiple doses of product). Special ink manufacturing processes were developed to produce the ink in-house to get a high-quality satin finish after printing. The package contains 26.5 lbs of product and is the only conventional laminate stand-up bag that meets the requisite drop-test standards. To meet this requirement, the bag has a specially designed ribbed construction near the top seal where failure usually takes place during drop. This bag design has been tested and withstands drop tests even when filled with 50 lbs of product.

Earthborn Holistic Primitive Natural
Manufacturer: Nordenia U.S.A.
Award: Printing Achievement
This Midwestern Pet's package displays a creative combination of process printing, two-pass adhesive laminations with a metallized film and side gussets. Nordenia's FlexZiBox package has the ability to display graphics on all five panels of the bag (front panel, two side gussets, back panel and bottom gusset). The metalized film helps maintain the pet foods' freshness and visual appeal on the store shelf because of the reflective appearance of the package.

Zeal for Life Protein Shake Pouch
Manufacturer: CL&D Graphics Inc.
Award: Printing Achievement
This Zeal for Life stand-up pouch was designed with eye-catching graphics to attract the attention of the shopper to a new product format, which provides the consumer with convenience and reclosability while also advancing the use of flexible packaging.

Scotts Miracle-Gro Expand 'n GRO Quad Seal Pouch
Manufacturer: Exopack LLC
Award: Printing Achievement
Exopack provided The Scotts Miracle-Gro Co. with a high-quality bottom-fill reclosable quad-seal package for its new expand 'n GRO product launch. The open-mouth bottom-fill package increased filling efficiencies for the customer and the quad seal format allowed for organized pallet pack configuration and displays. Featuring stunning graphics, consumers are drawn to this lightweight, easy to carry package.

Bertolli Meals
Manufacturer: American Packaging Corp.
Award: Printing Achievement
The precise detail, sharpness of colors and glossy appearance accurately and effectively achieved the customer's goal of promoting its high-end product. American Packaging used DuPont FAST digital plates and high-strength inks to achieve superior flexographic print reproduction.

Philadelphia Cream Cheese Overwrap with Smartseal
Manufacturer: Sonoco Flexible Packaging
Award: Technical Innovation
Kraft's introduces a new flexible packaging solution for its Philadelphia Cream Cheese in the South American marketplace. Incorporating an easy-open/reclose feature that has proven successful in the baked goods market, the package improves convenience and freshness over the current flow-wrap package. The package also provides a billboard on shelf with the metallized overwrap highlighting the bright colored graphics and text.

Scotts Turf Builder EZ Seed, 40 lb.
Manufacturer: Peel Plastic Products Ltd.
Award: Technical Innovation
With stunning graphics, the Scotts Turf Builder EZ Seed large-format bag incorporates several features that are functional for the consumer and for the manufacturer's filling operations. Peel Plastic Product's patented Grab and Go Handle is incorporated into the side gusset of the bag, making it easy for the consumer to carry home the 40-lb product and pour out the seeds. The bag also features Slide Rite's new EZ Open Track (EOT) slider reclosable feature, which provides a protective membrane to allow for bottom filling of the 40 lbs of product. While strong, the EOT track is easy for consumers to open without scissors.

Cryovac Freshness Plus Odor Scavenging Films
Manufacturer: Sealed Air Corp., Cryovac Food Packaging
Award: Technical Innovation
Cryovac Freshness Plus Odor Scavenging Films scavenge confinement odor that can be generated by product ingredients during the life of a product and are associated with a reduction in perceived freshness and quality. Cryovac Freshness Plus Odor Scavenging Films remove odors from the package to help maintain the desired aroma profile of the food. These "active chemistries" are part of the package and provide processors with additional means for protecting product freshness and the consumer experience.

Heinz Dip & Squeeze
Manufacturers: Curwood Inc., A Bemis Co., and Heinz North America
Award: Technical Innovation
The dual-function Dip & Squeeze package for Heinz ketchup-for foodservice and for at-home use-allows for both dipping and squeezing and addresses consumers' unmet needs: a package that is easy to open, easy to use, less mess, right-sized and simple. The final package has a wide, rigid flat base for stability when dipping host foods and a tear feature with a laser score at the top of the package for opening and squeezing. It gives the consumer choice, more control over opening and end use, less mess, right-sized with three times the amount of a typical 9-g packet.

The package is more resilient to abuse in the shipping environment relative to the current dip cups. It is designed to be flexible, so it is less prone to have cracked cups and leakers from dynamic forces. Thus, it can take on higher loads of shock and still be robust enough to sustain its package integrity while reducing waste in the end-use customer streams.

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