Tetra Pak is planning a push in the food packaging market with its cartonboard packaging offering.
Tetra Recart was the first retortable carton package which enabled filled product to be sterilized within the package. A direct competitor to cans and jars, the packaging can be filled with shelf-stable food products containing particles of almost any size – including vegetables, tomatoes, ready meals, soups and sauces, as well as pet food.
The first designs of the Recart packs were trialled in 2003, and the packaging has continuously evolved since then, although the company has always found it challenging to break into the food packaging market dominated by both flexible, glass and metal packaging.
By Tetra Pak’s own estimate, the Tetra Recart division has been able to take just 1% of the food packaging market until now.
Tetra Recart package weighs 66% less than a can, according top the firm.
“It’s a unique material and unique structure so we needed to understand how it would be designed – not every new packaging product has to plan this much detail,” explained Peter Jhaveri, managing director of Tetra Recart. “There’s not many companies that would invest in such an undertaking – it takes a lot of time and money to introduce to the market.”
Jhaveri said that consumer preference – research has shown the majority consumers prefer this cartonboard packaging – and so there is potential in this material.
The packaging is made mainly of wood fibre, is fully recycleable, and is FSC certified. “The worst thing you can do is use fossil resources because you are take something from earth and don’t bring it back. The fact that we are 69% renewable ensures we are taking as little as possible from the fossil resources,” said Jhaveri.
Jhaveri emphasised there were rigorous controls within the company, its laboratories working closely with sub-suppliers. “We don’t have any issues relating to food safety – and more importantly we make sure we don’t have any issues.
He also said the packaging had shelf appeal. “We have this freshness perception – we also have potentially the idea of convenience using this packaging.”
He added that a wall of cans do not always face the right way – consumers pick up a can and do not always buy it, and then do not put it back in the right angle thus morework for staff to re-merchandise.
The UK is the No.2 canned food market, and only 8% of tomato products are packaged in cartonboard packaging – a huge potential for growth.
“Tetra Pak is not in it for 1%. If you go back to the period from 2003 to now, there are a few reasons why it is not so large in the food packaging market. It has not been the same journey from 2003 to now. We launched and had to learn lots regarding equipment and improving quality. There is a rather large entry ticket for manufacturers for the machinery – in an industry not fast growing with not huge margins.
“The other thing is there is a lot of effort to educate and change the mindset here about the amount of equipment with our customers – the equipment could produce three times more than its producing today – customers are also pacing it at a certain level with regards to when and how much money to invest.”
Jhaveri said he was confident about the future of the product. “Going forward certainly I hope to get 10% share of the market. Will it take five years? Will it take 10 years – frankly for me and for Tetra Pak it is less important, although five years is better than 10 years no doubt.
“Its a big growth – from our perspective it’s not a problem to be able to provide such a big amount of products. Is industry ready to take it on? I think it is a slower change. Basically the pace of change is about the same as we had at the beginning with drinks carton packaging.”
Currently more than 140 brands in over 50 markets around the world are using Tetra Recart. Those brands include Heinz, Sainsbury’s, Asda, Del Monte, and COOP Italia.
