Switch results in improved transparency, faster sealing times & environmental benefits.
Marine Harvest, said to be the world’s leading seafood company and largest producer of farmed salmon, is the first organisation to use MAPET® II, the revolutionary new packaging material from specialist manufacturer of quality plastics trays and containers for the food industry, Faerch Plast Ltd.
Featuring similar properties as APET/PE, MAPET® II is produced from just one material, MONO amorphous polyethylene terephthalate or MAPET®, which seals easily and more securely than its predecessor, MAPET I and offers improved transparency for greater visibility of the product.
Faerch Plast is supplying Marine Harvest (Benelux) with MAPET II trays for packing fresh fish products for one of its customers, retailer Albert Heijn.
Phillippe De Bie of Marine Harvest, explained: “Our customer wanted to redesign their packaging to create a uniform look and feel across its entire poultry, red meat and fish product ranges. A major requirement of the re-design was that the trays had to be completely transparent in order to convey the freshness of the products.”
He continued: “It was obvious from the beginning that APET, which is not always easy to seal but has excellent clarity, had to be used. So, our best option by far was the new MAPET II, with its excellent sealability and improved transparency. Plus the new trays are more rigid than PP, do not deform, transport well and comply to HACCP rules.”
Because MAPET II is a recyclable mono material produced from recycled packaging, it presents increased benefits to the environment as well as cost-savings against a more expensive, non-recyclable laminate.
De Bie comments: “Planet is one of the four pillars of the Marine Harvest mission statement, so the environmental benefits were key to our decision. Plus, the authorities in the Netherlands have recently implemented a new campaign whereby all plastic packaging which can be recycled gets a ‘Plastic Heroes’ logo, so it was important for our customer to comply with these regulations.”
An additional bonus was the ability to change over to APET without the need for a major investment in new tools and machinery. Marine Harvest has been able to utilise its existing machines for de-nesting and sealing the MAPET II trays, with just a few minor alterations needed to the parameters of the sealing machines.
Following a thorough research project into the packaging options available on the market, plus a visit to Faerch Plast’s production plant in Holstebro, Denmark, Marine Harvest is now offering MAPET II packaging to its entire customer base.
As far as retailer Albert Heijn is concerned, its natural fish fillets, marinated fish, coated fish, burgers and fish with sauces are all being packed in MAPET II trays of differing sizes, colours and designs under modified atmospheric conditions at Marine Harvest’s facility in Holland.
De Bie concludes: “We were not surprised that Faerch Plast was the first to develop this new, innovative packaging material, since they are continually looking to improve their products and to develop new techniques. However, we were pleasantly surprised that their service and expertise was also excellent. We received great support throughout, in particular from technical and sales staff during the start-up phase. They even came over from Denmark to assist us in the switch over, which was very important since we changed our complete packaging process in one day.
“I would recommend MAPET II and Faerch Plast to all businesses which are looking to work with APET.”
Since it was established in 1969, Faerch Plast has built an unrivalled reputation for high quality plastics packaging products, supplying major blue chip customers in the ready meal, fresh meat, cold foods and snacks, and ambient food sectors with a wide range of containers and trays produced from PS, CPET, APET, PP, PLA, MAPET® and AMPET®.
Danish parent company Færch Plast A/S has opened a state-of-the-art manufacturing facility in the North East of England. A large part of its production for the UK market will be moved to the new Durham-based plant as part of an on-going strategy to secure costs, improve efficiencies and minimise its environmental impact.
Production has already started at the 14,000 square metre site. This key move will help improve operating efficiencies, shorten lead times and further strengthen the overall service provided to Faerch Plast’s rapidly expanding UK customer base.
Faerch Plast Ltd
Tel: 020 8254 2300
Comments are closed.