MACRIDGE MACADAMIA OIL

In 2000, Avoridge Estate lost most of its avocado crop during the widespread flooding of the Soutpansberg region. That year also saw the first planting of macadamia trees to establish a dual crop system of avocado and macadamias.

Flip Potgieter had a vision for his own macadamia processing factory that would include value-added lines such as pressing macadamia oil, roasting the nuts, as well as manufacturing his own bio-diesel. His dream is now a reality: their vehicles and tractors run on bio-fuel and Macridge Macadamia Oil is available at leading stores!

There’s a story worth telling behind the ‘horseshoe and wings’ motif featured on the body and neck labels. When the Potgieter family first started exporting avocados, 36 years ago, they had to decide on a logo and a name.

Combining their great love for horses, and that the avocados were exported by air, the family came up with the idea of a horseshoe with wings. The logo has endured and is well known in Europe among avocado consumers and distributors.

Using Pretoria-based Raw Design’s creative talents and, looking like an expensive Sauvignon Blanc in a distinctive Vinopack, Burgundy-styled PET bottle from Polypet, Macridge Macadamia Oil catches your eye on shelf. Westdene Printing prints the attractive labels and Egyptian Foil supplies the silver endorsement sticker for the plastic capsule.

USN’S ACTIVE SPORTS DRINK RANGE

Our perennial concern with energy and wellness never fails to impress me! To quench this consumer desire there’s a constant rollout of new products in this segment.

Inspired by Albe Geldenhuys, the USN design team responded to the challenge to come up with a distinctively different sports drink brand that stands out in the fridge against a long list of established competitors. Cinqpet (Astrapak) manufactures the PET bottle on a Sidel blowmoulder, and the labels are supplied by Midrand-based Universal Labels.

Working closely with its international partners, USN’s R&D team claims to use the latest formulations to meet all the statements on the label.

BRUTAL FRUIT’S CHEEKY NEW CRANBERRY FLAVOUR

Launched last year, amid much fanfare, and subse-quently widely promoted in-store, on bus shelters and billboards, Brutal Fruit’s cheeky new Cranberry flavour cheers up every harassed (male) driver caught in a traffic jam.
There’s a long list of credits for this vibrant variant. The original artwork was developed by internationally-renowned, Netherlands-based design house Claessens. Glass Decorations prints the ‘labels’ on glass bottles from Consol Glass and the corrugated trays are supplied by Corruseal. The shrink film for the six-pack is manufactured by City Pack (Astrapak) and the crown closures are from Coleus.

WOOLWORTH’S ONE-OFF WINE

During the late ’80s, when predicting packaging opportunities into the next decade, I asked a team of doyens what they deemed to be the best closures for wine bottles. Without exception they openly favoured the metal closure. They did, however, state that it would be a long time before the conservative wine drinker would accept the transition from the historically favoured cork stopper.
Now 25 years later, metal screw closures, such as the Stelvin, are commonplace among elitist wines and the subject of acceptance has changed to PET bottles.

Showing support for the new guy on the block Woolworths has introduced its One-Off range in PET bottles from Mondi Plastics (PPM October 10, p39). The labels are printed by CCL using Kate at K8’s design options. MCG supplies the metal closures and the wine is filled by Wamakers at Paarl Bottling in Wellington.

NEO PACK’S PLASTIC POTATO BAG

This story began when we came across a Pick n Pay newspaper advert offering a 7kg bag of potatoes at a never to be repeated promotional price for one day only! The next morning Shirley, my wife, handed me her shopping list with a warning not to forget the potatoes.

Once in Pick n Pay I grabbed a bag, immediately realising it was not the conventional kraft multiwall paper sack, into which potatoes are usually packed, but a decorated plastic bag with non-slip embossing and three finger-carry holes.

The idea to change from paper to plastic packaging was the brainchild of Chris Kühn, director of Neo Pack. Chris has been packing potatoes in 2kg plastic bags for many years, realising early on that plastic offers many benefits. These include limited evidence of scuffing during transportation, the bags don’t tear when exposed to rain (important to hawkers selling their produce outside) and the plastic keeps the potato skins moist and intact.

ITB Manufacturing develops and prints the LDPE coextruded bags for Neo Pack using design work from Angela Driver of Sainsbury Design. These sacks are set to change the face of potato marketing.

First published in PACKAGiNG & Print Media, February 2011.

About Clive Glover

After many years in FMCG sales and marketing, and later in packaging as marketing manager of Kohler Plastics and then Kohler Flexibles, Clive formed his own packaging consulting company in 2000. He also started writing articles for various packaging magazines, and purchased his first digital camera to support his articles. Two weeks later was given his first professional photography assignment – and the rest is history.

Clive is now first-choice photographer for many FMCG and packaging companies as he has the valuable knack of working digital magic in the specialised area of pack photograpy.

Clive’s Column appears every month in PACKAGiNG & Print Media Magazine and covers new packs on shelf in SA.