P&G pioneers potato snack printing technology
print words and images directly onto each chip has been developed.
Pringles Prints, the first product to use the new proprietary
technology, will feature words and images that can be printed on
one side of the crisp right side up, upside down, in blue or red.
Manufacturer Procter & Gamble (P&G) claims that this technology is the first of its kind in the US to be used on food. The technology uses food colouring that doesn't alter the taste of the snack.
P&G has pioneered the revolutionary Prints method because it believes that the technique will allow the company to customise its products in a number of new ways. For example, the manufacturer has teamed up with Hasbro, a worldwide leader in children's and family leisure time entertainment products, to use questions and answers from Trivial Pursuit Junior.
As a result Pringles Prints will feature 2,400 fun trivia questions and answers from six different Trivial Pursuit Junior categories randomly printed on the potato crisps.
"Pringles is the leader and founder of the stacked crisp category and now we're taking it to a whole new level," said Jamie Egasti, vice president of Procter & Gamble's North America Snacks Division. "With the introduction of Pringles Prints, we have developed a new way to delight consumers by adding fun and excitement to one of kids' favourite lunchtime snacks while delivering incremental volume growth for our customers."
For now, P&G says that Pringles Prints will be available in Original flavour only in canister and Snack Stacks sizes. Pringles Prints Trivial Pursuit Junior will be available nationwide in August 2004. Additionally, Pringles Prints Fun Facts, Animal Facts and Jokes will become available in select U.S. retail locations in June and July 2004.
The new product has been supported by a multi-million dollar marketing campaign, including television advertising, new packaging, and coupons. P&G hopes that Pringles Prints will build on the introduction of Snack Stacks in 2002.
