The market for aseptic stick packs continues to grow rapidly. They are extremely easy for consumers to handle and manufacturers benefit from lower material costs. Compared to conventional portion cups for UHT milk, they can reduce a manufacturer’s packaging material requirements by up to 50% – the carbon footprint is greatly improved and the impact on the environment is reduced. In addition, stick pack packaging has a positive effect on transport volume (50% more packaging for the same packaging volume compared to portion cups) and transport weight. Additionally the stick packs can be packed in decorative boxes and presented accordingly in the supermarket.
These are the reasons why Slovakia’s dairy company has chosen this consumer-friendly packaging. The machine runs in 2-shift operation with 12 lanes and produces 36,000 stick packs per hour.
The machine sterilizes the flat foil on all sides using active packaging degermination (germs eradicated >log 5) and feeds it into the sterile area. Cutters then notch the foil in strips through to the seal layer. The packaging is subsequently formed into duplex stick packs under sterile conditions using a special forming shoulder and then sealed on three sides. Lastly the stick packs are filled with UHT milk, also in the sterile area, using dosing equipment specific to the product.
Different kind of UHT milk: whole milk, semi skimmed milk, lactose free milk, and coffee cream are sold under the name ‘MINIMILK’. The latest product innovation is a plant-based oat drink in this variant under the name ‘MINIOAT’. All varieties are packaged in a 10 ml format; the manufacturer plans to expand the range to include a 7 ml format as well. To broaden market opportunities, the dairy company has also initiated the Halal certification process.
The practical stick packs are an ideal solution for offices, hotels, cafés, fast-food chains, trains and buses as well as on-the-go. It will come in handy at conferences, events and all types of social occasions where warm drinks are being served with no refrigeration options available.
“We are very satisfied with the consumer friendly packaging solution this machine offers for our UHT milk” reported Tibor Balogh, CEO of Euromilk. “Thanks to the new packaging, milk and cream coming from local farms find a way to even more people, and thanks to it we can fulfil our mission to ensure that what is good remains good.” MINIMILK is liquid milk or coffee cream of high quality. It’s not dried milk extract, but truly delicious milk and cream from Rye Island—a region nestled between the Danube and the Little Danube in southern Slovakia.
