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GOLDEN, Colo. - - When the packaging industry's use of fluorocarbon-treated board was discontinued in 2000, unattractive package stains from vegetable oils in margarines seeped back into view. The R & D team from Graphic Packaging Corporation (GPC) went to work, built a better box (at no additional cost), applied for a patent, and won praise and full approval from their customer. In the process, GPC received an International Institute of Packaging Professionals' coveted 2001 AmeriStar award, one of the industry's most distinguished honors.

The new secondary package for the variety of Lipton Margarine Sticks hides exterior carton stains, a natural result of vegetable oils, and was accomplished using general converting methods and using standard paperboard, resulting in no increased paperboard costs.

"We took the initiative to develop a process which would produce a replacement structure for Unilever/Lipton's margarines," explained Bill Minnich, GPC's marketing manager. "When we demonstrated the development to Lipton, they accepted the new process in full." Mr. Minnich added that historically, in warmer temperatures, vegetable oil stains become visible more quickly than in refrigerated situations. As grocery stores move to create more end-of-aisle displays, this problem could become more prevalent. Although there is no change in the performance of the package, new displays of products will maintain their fresh, attractive appearance to consumers as a result of the Graphic Packaging process.

The new package is virtually identical to the previous Lipton cartons made with a fluorocarbon treatment to the board. "Lipton requested that there be no obvious change in the appearance of the product packages. As such, there is no visual alteration between the old and new packages," said Mark Sinclair, GPC's director of research and development. "Thus, Lipton achieved its desire for a seamless transition to the new cartons."

In 2000, the United States Environmental Protection Agency published a report on fluorocarbons (FC). The report stated that FCs are persistent in the environment, and thus are included in its list of persistent, bio-accumulative toxins. 3M made the decision to cease production of this barrier property (which is applied to paperboard used in making packaging for a variety of products, including foods). At the time, 3M supplied about 80% of the market for fluorocarbons.

In addition to GPC's new package providing full features of the secondary package at no increased cost, the package can be produced with no bio-accumulative fluorocarbons.

Graphic Packaging Corporation is one of North America's leading folding carton producers with a formidable roster of customers. In addition to Lipton products, they include some of the most instantly recognized companies in the world: Bristol-Myers Squibb, Colgate-Palmolive, Coors, General Mills, Hormel Foods, Johnson & Johnson, Kellogg's, Kraft Foods, Lorillard, Mars, Perseco, Pepperidge Farm, Philip Morris, Pillsbury, Procter & Gamble, Quaker Oats, Ralston Purina and Unilever.

Graphic Packaging Corporation has been awarded over 150 patents for its printing and package converting processes. Along with the IOPP recognition, the company has also captured virtually every top award in the packaging industry from such organizations as the Gravure Association of America, the Paperboard Packaging Council, the Flexible Packaging Association and the Packaging Association of Canada.

Graphic Packaging Corporation (NYSE: GPK) can be located on the Internet at www.graphicpackaging.com.