13 Nov 2011 Clive’s Column Issue 5 2012
SIMONSBERG’S NEW BRANDING
Simonsberg has been making fine cheeses in Stellenbosch for decades, but in July 2003, Italian food and dairy giant, Parmalat, bought the company from Unilever SA. There’s been a methodical roll-out of new packs for Simonsberg’s product line-up over the last six months, using Cape Town-based Fountainhead’s design work to showcase the range.
The wedge-shaped Brie and hexagonal shaped Camembert cartons are supplied by Printafoil, renowned for innovative package designs that stand apart from the competition. The 230g tubs and embossed lids are from Marcom Plastics, while the in-mould labels are from sister company Alex White Holdings (both part of Astrapak). The Simonsberg range has never looked better!
REDBERRY AND COFFEE-OF-THE-MONTH CLUB
If you are passionate about coffee and fortunate enough to be a member of the Coffee-of-the-Month Club (linked to Wine-of-the-Month Club), then you’re familiar with the name RedBerry.
Founded in 1994, RedBerry’s objective is to import the finest coffee beans from the world’s foremost coffee-growing regions and introduce them to South African coffee lovers. I receive the Tasters Pack with six Espresso ground 250g packs from around the world – each labelled with anecdotal descriptions of the area of its origin. It all began in 1984 when Ed Cumming bought Beaver Creek Farm, situated on the foothills overlooking Port Edward, and planted his first coffee crop two years later. Since 1994 Beaver Creek and RedBerry have roasted more than 66 coffee varieties at their roastery on the Estate.
The pouches and valves are from Cape-based Pouch Dynamics, while labels are supplied by KZN-based Uniprint and designed by Johann Bergh, a South African living in Florida, US.
SPAR ‘READY TO HEAT’ WINTER SOUPS
Since the 1990s, the canned soup market has burgeoned with ready-to-eat soups requiring no additional liquid to prepare. Microwaveable bowls have expanded this market even further, offering convenience (especially in workplaces) and popular lunch items. Although on offer throughout the year, ready-to-eat soups are especially evident on supermarket shelves during the winter months. Traditional canned condensed soup, the kind requiring additional water, may eventually fade into memory as convenience products take centre stage.
Although they feature the same designs used last year, Spar Freshline Ready To Heat soups – in clear 500g PP tubs from Polyoak’s Dairypack with in-mould labels, using the Hardy Boys’ stunning designs, printed on Tadbik’s combination Goebel offset gravure press – outshine all others in the fridge!
VITAL’S VITAMIN RANGE IN NEW CONTAINERS
Vital Health Foods was founded in 1947 by Jack Grieve in the small town of Wellington in the Western Cape. It was the first health foods company in South Africa and, today, is the largest in Africa. Vital is a family-owned and family-run company, now into its third-generation of management.
Previously available in cartons with tablets in plastic zippered bags, the Vital Vitamin range is now packed in attractive HDPE blow-moulded and air tight, containers with injection-moulded, tamper-evident, snap-on, flip-top-hinged PP caps from Mpact Plastics. Using design work by Nicky Heyburg of Pmac, two labels are utilised – the wraparound front and side labels, printed by SA Litho, match the previous carton’s look, while the back label, printed by Rotolabel, provides detailed information regarding the pack’s contents.
To finish off the dynamic transition from carton to HDPE packaging, over labelling secures the embossed lid to the convex tapered-shaped body.
First published in PACKAGiNG & Print Media, Issue 5 2012.
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.