Switching to Aseptic Cartons 'Smooth' Move for Lyons-Magnus
Long known as an innovator in the food service industry, Lyons-Magnus is at it again. The company's newest product line, fruit smoothie mixes packaged in 46-oz aseptic cartons from SIG Combibloc Inc. (Columbus, Ohio), are enabling food service operations nationwide to serve the creamy and refreshing drinks with minimal effort. Processed and packaged at the Lyons-Magnus plant in Fresno, CA, the popular drinks are enabling the company to capitalize on the beverage industry trend towards aseptic packaging.
The drink mixes are available in six flavors — strawberry, raspberry, tropical fruit, banana, peach and mocha. Food service operators simply have to open the carton of liquid smoothie mix, pour and blend with ice. The fruit smoothies are an addition to Lyons-Magnus' already extensive line of aseptically packaged goods for the food service industry, which include a variety of juice products and syrups.
Several Operational Advantages
The Combibloc Pour 'n Seal aseptic cartons from SIG Combibloc allow Lyons-Magnus to offer several operational advantages to commercial kitchens. The pre-made mixes eliminate the chopping, measuring and cleanup time associated with making fruit smoothies from scratch, and, in addition, they do away with the time-consuming thawing process necessary for smoothies made from frozen mixes. Moreover, they provide consistency of flavor, texture and color without preservatives. In short, the aseptic cartons allow companies to add smoothies to their menu with little effort or investment.
The 46-oz cartons, which feature a front-panel pressure-sensitive label to differentiate flavors, are topped with a recloseable pour spout from J.L. Clark (Rockford, IL). The patented injection-molded polypropylene combiTop fitment is applied in-line to carton blanks at the Lyons-Magnus' Fresno plant. An internal tab on the fitment serves to open the sterile package without the use of a tool or instrument, and a self-contained vent hole and no-drip spout facilitate smooth pouring. The company uses Combibloc fillers that can accommodate sizes up to two liters.
"We believe that by aseptically packaging our smoothies we're giving food service operators a unique opportunity to add this popular and profitable beverage concept to their menus," says Lyons-Magnus president Bob Smittcamp. "The aseptic process guarantees quality, and the aseptic package means that operators can add the concept conveniently." Smittcamp adds that the response to the product line, which was made available early last year, has been excellent.
Aseptic Gaining Momentum
Smittcamp sees aseptic cartons gaining momentum among food service operators for a variety of reasons. Food safety is one. The aseptic processing and packaging system is specifically designed to eliminate dangerous microorganisms, as the product first goes through high-temperature, short-time sterilization (Figure 1). The process exposes a product to only the necessary amount of heat for the shortest possible time before the sterilized and cooled product is filled into a sterile container and sealed inside a sterile chamber. Thus, from the moment the product enters the aseptic system, it is protected from contaminants.
Enhanced product quality is another reason for aseptic packaging's emerging popularity. In contrast to traditional processing for shelf-stable products, which involves using the heated product to sterilize the container, the aseptic packaging system involves filling a sterile carton with a sterile product in a sterile environment. In this way the food or beverage can be processed using High Temperature/Short Time (HTST) or Ultra-High Temperature technology, whereby the time and temperature can be tailored to place the least amount of thermal stress on the product.
Finally, convenience is another benefit of Lyons-Magnus' choosing the Combibloc carton. For their customers, no freezing or refrigeration is required of the unopened fruit smoothie mix.
Multi-Layer Laminate
The block-shaped aseptic carton is a multi-layer laminate of three materials: paperboard, polyethylene and aluminum foil (Figure 2). The paperboard, which makes up 70% of the Combibloc Pour 'N Seal, provides stiffness, strength and the efficient block shape of the carton. Polyethylene on the innermost layer forms the seals that make the carton liquid-tight, and a protective polyethylene coating on the exterior keeps the carton dry and provides a printing surface. An ultra-thin layer of aluminum provides a barrier against light and oxygen.
The Combibloc Pour 'N Seal carton is available in 46- and 64-oz sizes. SIG Combibloc manufactures the carton materials, prints the package graphics using rotogravure presses and seals the critical back seam before shipping the carton sleeves to food and beverage processing facilities. The packaging process is completed on Combibloc filling machines installed at customer locations.
"Lyons-Magnus has long been known as an innovator in the food service industry," says Geoff Campbell, VP of sales and marketing at SIG Combibloc. "The addition of great-tasting fruit smoothies to their already extensive line of aseptically packaged products demonstrates Lyons-Magnus' confidence in the aseptic carton as a successful package format for food service."
For more information:
SIG Combibloc Inc., 4800 Roberts Rd., Columbus, OH 43228-9699, Tel: 614-876-3700, Fax: 614-876-8678.
J.L. Clark, 2300 6th St., Rockford, IL 61125, Tel: 815-962-8861, Fax: 815-965-0417.