Manufacturer of plastic storage boxes lands fish farm contract

A mere two weeks after announcing the launch of their new fish box service which will supply Belgian supermarkets with Scottish salmon, PPS, a manufacturer of plastic storage boxes, has won its first ever contract with a fish farm.

Under the terms of the six-figure contract, PPS will supply plastic crates for a Belgian company Levenstond Seafood for use in their salmon processing plant.

The business, which is based in Edinburgh, specialises in producing crates for fresh food, and is also currently in negations with another fish farming business located in the Western Isles.

Iain McArthur, who runs PPS with his business partner David Peggie, explained: “While we have contracts in place with several Scottish-based companies already, this is our first with the fish farm industry. It is a breakthrough for PPS in the overseas market for returnable plastic boxes too, as salmon would previously have been transported in single-use, expanded polystyrene (EPS) boxes.

“We are trying to boost business with companies in Scotland, offering them a sustainable way to transport their goods without the waste EPS boxes create.”

PPS also has sites in Grimsby and Measham in the Midlands, and is currently considering setting up a crate washing plant in Scotland.

McDonalds introduce 3D boxes and packaging for Happy Meals

McDonalds has brought an innovative new twist to the boxes and packaging of its Happy Meals, with 3D designs and integrated 3D glasses.

The packaging design project was accomplished within an incredibly tight timeframe given the scale of the undertaking, with around 12 million cartons designed and manufactured in only eight weeks.

Clarifoil’s acetates were chosen by the packaging designers. Marion Bauer, the head of marketing at Clarifoil, said: “At Clarifoil we listen closely to our customers and develop products that give greater options. No challenge is too big. We thrive on finding the right solution for our specifiers.”

The requirements for the packaging were extremely complex. They were aimed at children, so they had to be easy to use, and they also had to be made of a material that could handle being in direct contact with food as well as offering transmittance values that were suitable for computer screens and printed cartons.

There were also a number of health and safety regulations that the packaging had to adhere to, as the glasses were classed as a toy. All in all, the packaging represents an attractive and innovative step forward in packaging design.