Packing machine to use radio frequency seal
manufacturer as part of the company's bid to crack the food
packaging market with its radio frequency technology.
Stanelco markets a method to seal plastic food-tray packages using radio frequency technology, called Greenseal. Thecompany claims the technology provides a cheaper and more efficient method heat sealing trays for an industry focused on cost cutting and food safety.
The company targets its technology for products using using the modified atmosphere packaging (MAP) method, Stanelco's Greenseal heat-sealing technology is cheaper, better for the environment andhelps ensure that perishable foods are safer for the consumer, the company's deputy chief executive officer, Howard White, told FoodProductionDaily.com..
Current heat-sealing methods for plastic tray packaging uses a polyethylene laminate as a glue to make the seal, typically at between 150C-160C. Stanelco's Greenseal method does away with thelaminate and welds the two sides of the package together at 50C using radio frequencies. The method results in a 20 per cent reduction in the cost of packaging material and a 75 per cent reduction inthe cost of energy used in the process, the company claims.
Under an agreement with G Mondini Spa, an Italian company, Stanelco will jointly develop a radio-frequency tray lidding machine.The agreement moves Stanelco into new territory in marketing Greenseal. Currently Stanelco has been retrofitting the technology on to machines already used by food companies and retailers.
"By further improving machine reliability and lowering costs, it will greatly speed up the acceptance of the Greenseal technology as an industry standard within the packagingindustry," Stanelco stated in a press release this week.
Stanelco will provide the new machine to suppliers of Asda in the UK and Ireland, before selling it to the wider market. The company made a break through last year by forging an agreement with Asdato retrofit 200 heat-sealing machines belonging to suppliers to the UK supermarket chain.
In May this year the company opened an office in Orlando, Florida to target Wal-Mart, Asda's parent company, along with Albertson's, Kroger's and Safeway.
In other related news Stanelco said it is currently testing the technology on its new biocompostible food tray, provisionally named Starpol 2000. The tray is made of a blend of starch and polyvinylalcohol (PVA) resin.
SStanelco believes its Starpol 2000 range of materials will be able to significantly undercut the price of polyester whilst providing the necessary gas barrier for MAP sealing.
Stanelco, a listed UK company, is headquartered in Southampton. It also markets a range of air cushion packaging andwatersoluble films and adhesives.
