Sargento slides right into the latest pouch reclosure technology
Dan WagnerSargento Foods Inc. has found a new way to keep their shredded cheese products fresh and give consumers the reclosable convenience they demand.
Sargento's is first in the shredded cheese category to use the Hefty[R] Slide-Rite[R] advanced closure system from Pactiv Corp. The arrangement with Pactiv gives the cheese manufacturer multi-year, exclusive access to Slide-Rite technology for cheese products in North America.
The debut of Sargento's newest reclosable pouch coincides with Pactiv's launch of a retrofit system that applies the Slide-Rite closure inline on existing horizontal form-fill-seal equipment. Previously, the Slide-Rite closure was available only on pre-made bags which are filled at a slower rate than packages produced on a horizontal form-fill-sealer. This retrofit system will cost-effectively expand the range of packaging applications for the easy-to-use Slide-Rite closure.
Brad Rostowfske, senior business manager for Sargento Consumer Products Div., says, "The key was to develop a consumer-preferred slider closure package that provided the required level of hermetic properties, functionality, tamper-evidence and merchandising without adversely affecting machine speed and scrap."
Challenges included finding reliable slider feeding, attachment and positioning to the track; developing a unique slider end retention process; and precise registration of the track and parts.
The retrofit unit is mounted between the unwind stand and the folding board on a horizontal form-fill-seal unit. It applies the Slide-Rite slider closure in three steps: (1) the slider is applied onto the track; (2) then termination strips are applied on both ends of the track; and (3) the assembled track is applied onto the film.
"The application takes place at line speed with no adverse effect on production efficiencies," says Rostowfske. "Further, the unit is able to meet our stringent quality and registration application requirements. One of the goals that we were able to achieve is a registration tolerance of [+/-.sup.1]/64 of an inch."
Pactiv now is licensing the retrofit technology--which withstands dairy washdown standards--and is also working with several original equipment manufacturers to apply the feature to new equipment.
To help draw consumer attention to the new closing device, the Sargento packages feature an enlarged photo of the slider closure. Additional opening directions instruct users to tear off the easy-open tamper-evident header strip, which exposes the slider. The slider then is moved along the track to an "open" position that gives consumers access to the contents.
Pactiv Corp. (877) PACTIV-1 www.pactiv.com
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