I had the opportunity to speak on a panel at the Institute of Food Technologists’ annual Food Expo in Chicago on the subject of sustainability and the implications of climate regulation on the food and beverage industry.  The panel discussed the progress of formal climate legislation, the importance of developing more energy and water efficient approaches to farming and agriculture, voluntary carbon reporting and labeling programs for consumer goods, and consumers’ perception of sustainability.

Coming from the perspective of a packaging technology provider, AEB is feeling the pull from co-packers and brand owners for solutions that offer strong sustainability and economic value propositions.  The packaging research firm Mintel released a study earlier in the conference illustrating a lack of consensus among consumers on what defined sustainability.  Furthermore, they found that consumers preferred “sustainable” products, but were not willing to pay higher prices.  This sentiment is paralleled in the market for packaging technology equipment.

As we discussed in a recent webinar, AEB’s Blu sterilization technology enables greater sustainability as well as a superior Total Cost of Ownership when compared to conventional thermal or chemical based approaches.   With increasing pressure to show progress on common sustainability metrics such as carbon footprint reduction, water footprint reduction, and package light weighting, food and beverage packagers are considering advanced technologies for new filling capacity and for filling line retrofits. 

Download a copy of our IFT presentation here. 

 The mood at the annual ISPE Washington DC conference was one of cautious optimism.  The near halting of pharmaceutical manufacturing capacity expansion in 2009 has given way to new projects and the evaluation of new manufacturing technologies.  This optimism was tempered by impending consolidations in the industry and a still relatively meager drug pipeline.  That said, interest in new technologies for aseptic manufacturing remains a top interest.

The conference included a two-day forum on barrier isolation technology complete with case studies and new technology presentations.  Barrier isolators are used for aseptic manufacturing of injectable drug products, where primary packaging containers, including vials and syringes, are filled in a sterile filling environment with automated filling equipment.  The convenience and safety advantages offered by pre-filled syringes vs. traditional vials, such as the elimination of risk from contamination each time a dose is drawn from the vial, are driving significant market growth and demand for barrier isolator filling systems.  A recent report, Pre-Filled Syringes and Related Systems: World Market Outlook 2010-2025, forecasted continued double-digit growth rates in pre-filled syringes for a range of injectable products.  

AEB supplies low energy electron beam systems that sterilize containers of prefilled syringes.  Electron beam sterilization offers dramatic advantages over the conventional manual approach of spraying and wiping containers with a chemical sterilant.  Over the past two years, several barrier isolator systems equipped with AEB technology have been deployed and the first lines are ramping to full capacity.  Cilag AG of Switzerland delivered a case study documenting its deployment and ramp-up to production scale of a barrier isolator system from Metall+Plastic Gmbh that uses AEB's electron beam emitter technology.  They reported long runs with reliable sterilization performance from the electron beam tunnel with over 1500 hours of operation in a production environment.  This represents an important milestone in proving the efficacy of this application. 

The growing need for high performance sterilization technologies in the pharmaceutical and medical device manufacturing industries points to increased consideration in incorporating electron beam technology.   Electron beams provides a practical approach for aseptic transfer applications like prefilled syringe tub sterilization and a solution for direct sterilization of materials during packaging or aseptic manufacturing.  For more information, download our ebook here

Highlights included:
AEB's Dr. Anne Testoni presented work on characterizing the efficacy of electron beam treatment on 3-D objects. (Click here to download presentation)

AEB's Dr. Somchintana Norasetthekul had a paper published in the Radtech Report on AEB's collaboration with UMass Lowell to investigate the effects on low energy electron beam on typical plastics used in packaging.  (Click here to download paper)

AEB collaborator, Dr. George Sadler of Prove It LLC had a paper published on the use of low energy electron beam for active packaging applications.   (Click here to download paper)

AEB collaborator, Dr. Mike Laksin from Ideon LLC summarized recent developments in electron beam ink chemistries for food packaging applications.   (Click here to download paper)

The painful economics of food safety. Consumers attention to the safety of packaged foods is rising due to recent high profile issues related to 1) illness related to foodborne pathogens and 2) concerns over the use of BPA in many common packaging materials.  Brand owners are taking unprecedented steps to manage a brand's exposure to safety concerns.  Representatives from the USDA discussed the impending sweeping changes to US food safety regulation being promised in the upcoming food safety bill at the Food Summit. At the Global Pouch Forum, coating and adhesives provider Henkel Corporation discussed the economics of managing packaging safety concerns.

Corporate sustainability efforts are encouraging CPGs to reduce their environmental footprint and introduce new sustainable packaging concepts.  Paul Comey discussed Green Mountain Coffee's sustainability program that includes building demand for sustainable products and taking steps to protect the environment.  Speakers at the Global Pouch Forum discussed the sustainability benefits of flexible packaging vs conventional rigid or paperboard based packaging.  Allied Development presented data showing carbon footprint reduction of 30-40% from moving to pouch based packaging from cups or cans.

Consumers are demanding healthier options in single serve, shelf stable formats.  With growth in big box retailers, consumers are looking to buy cases of shelf stable products and refrigerate as needed.  The shift in demand is driving the growth of aseptic packaging approaches that deliver high quality shelf stable products without preservatives and without the thermal degradation of hot fill or heat based processes.  AEB partner Gualapack announced their plans to deploy an aseptic pouch filler for pre-formed Cheerpack spouted pouches. 

Technology investment is evolving in response to turbulent financial markets, volatile energy and raw material costs, and the growth in smaller run product lines.  As large brand owners launch niche brands to compete with a growing group of beverage entrepreneurs, the importance of co-packers is growing.  Rather than invest in a full aseptic filling line for a new product line, brand owners are more likely to work with a co-packer.  This allows CPGs to avoid large capital expenditures in exchange for paying slightly higher unit costs -  brand owners are better able to match expenses with revenues, enabling a larger number of niche brands to enter the market.  At the same time, those installations making capital investments are more apt to consider measures of Total Cost of Ownership (TCO) that include operating costs associated with energy and water treatment.

The combination of these trends supports the need for new packaging sterilization technologies for aseptic packaging.  AEB's Blu technology delivers chemical free packaging sterilization to aseptic food and beverage applications.  With a compelling TCO, Blu enabled filling solutions are enabling innovation across all packaging formats including bottles, closures, pouches, bag-in-box, and form fill seal applications.  For more information on Blu, click here.

As the attention and discussion increases around water footprints - the amount of water it takes to make the goods we consume - one message is becoming clear: the issue is not a trend.

This World Water Day (March 22) Jaymi Heimbuch of Treehugger used her observations across industries and companies, including at IBM and SABMiller, to argue that the water footprint is poised to become the next Energy Star label. But it's clear that companies are still navigating these waters with a sense of trepidation. They're seeking clear, universal reporting and measurement standards. The Water Footprint Network has stepped into this role and is scheduled to release an updated guidelines manual soon. Companies are also trying to determine the smartest and most cost-effective places to trim water use. Some are obvious - such as agriculture and electricity - but new areas are emerging where companies can eliminate or reduce water from a process, often driven by technology.

More efficient sterilization methods in the food and beverage industries are one example. On the average aseptic bottling line, our electron beam-based sterilization system saves 3 million gallons of water a year compared to traditional methods. When you consider a plant with five or six lines - that's a lot of water. Electron beams are just one example of a change in the process that significantly reduces water use.

We're working with small companies like UK-based FarmRight who are using electron beam systems to sterilize their unique single-serve packaging called Dairystix.  But it's the major food and beverage companies who are becoming vocal about water saving practices, helping increase consumer awareness. For example, PepsiCo is on track to meet its goal of reducing water consumption by 20% by 2015. Coca-Cola has made the same pledge and hopes to achieve it by 2012. Nestle has an extensive water section on its website where lays out a plan to reduce water consumption by 10-15% in the next five years.

What remains to be seen is which companies will emerge as leaders. Who will define the future of green manufacturing? Who will adopt the most innovative water-saving technologies? It's promising to see that the race has begun.

• Nestle Launches Lightweight PET Bottle:  Already the leader in lightweighting single serve water bottles, Nestle has managed to reduce the PET resin weight of their water bottles by another 25%.  Additionally, they are pledging to develop water bottles produced entirely from recycled or renewable materials by 2020.  
  
• PepsiCo introduces lighter-weight, eco-friendly packaging in a new bottle for Propel fitness water: Pepsi successfully delivered the mechanical properties the market requires for a single serve sports drink while using 33% less material than the older design. PepsiCo makes the argument that from an energy savings perspective, this lightweighting is equivalent of taking 6,800 cars off the road.  
  
• Pepsico introduces a 10.9-g Eco-Fina bottle for Aquafina water: This new bottle design uses 50% less plastic than the bottle used in 2002.  In addition to changing the design, Pepsi now produces bottles at the same site as where they bottle the water, eliminating the carbon footprint and secondary packaging associated with logistics of producing in a separate location. 
  
• Abbott commits to global reduction in packaging: On the list of 40 sustainable packaging initiatives is bottle lightweighting and increasing the recycled content of their packaging. 
  
• Coca Cola recently began shipping product in its "Plant Bottle": The new design incorporates a blend of bioplastic with conventional PET packaging.  This approach is a more practical short term solution to improving sustainability through the use of bioplastics.
  
  

After finishing up 2009 with our major Blu announcement, everyone at AEB is excited about the New Year.  2010 already seems to quickly be distinguishing itself as Greentech Media's Michael Kanellos pointed out after a flurry of greentech VC activity last week. It's great to see this kind of momentum, which speaks volumes about the health of the clean technology industry as a whole.  

AEB CEO Mitch Tyson started the year with an issue that he's deeply invested in: The triple bottom line. It's not a new business philosophy, but one that is still evolving and that some companies want but haven't committed to. In his column entitled "Why The Triple Bottom Line Matters More Than Ever" on GreenBiz.com, Mitch explores the history of the triple bottom line, as well as the importance and benefits of pursuing sustainability in business.  Through his role with the New England Clean Energy Council and as a voice in the cleantech industry, triple bottom line is not only a practice that is embedded in his own company, but one he's always discussing and advocating.   

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With Consumer Packaged Goods Manufacturers leveraging sustainable packaging as a differentiator, the dimensions on which sustainability is measured continue to become more complex.  While industry scorecards (e.g. Walmart, Sustainable Packaging Coalition) may eventually offer a standardized approach, the number of variables in the sustainability equation and the size of the packaging market will encourage the development of new technologies and new technology marketing.

The question of which plastic offers the most sustainable strategy for food and beverage packaging is particularly complex.  Lux Research recently published the figure below comparing various "conventional" plastics to common bioplastics, including PLA.  Their analysis appropriately includes both measures of effectiveness and economics in addition to ecological.  As discussed in our recap to last year's Michigan State Packaging Conference, definitions of sustainability must include how effective the packaging is in delivering the packaged product to the consumer.  For example, plastic used for beverage packaging must deliver the appropriate gas and light barrier performance, reclosability, and mechanical functionality needed by the consumer.  A more biodegradable package or lower carbon footprint package that does not perform will result in a higher amount of wasted product - which should lower the sustainability score for a product line.  

Coca Cola recently began shipping product in its "Plant Bottle" design that incorporates a blend of bioplastic with conventional PET packaging.  This approach is a more practical short term solution to improving sustainability through the use of bioplastics.

AEB's Blu sterilization technology can help reduce the amount of plastic used in beverage bottles by removing heat from the sterilization process.  The heat required by conventional sterilization technologies stresses the integrity of bottles and forces package designers to use more raw material in order to provide additional mechanical integrity.  While the use of electron beam sterilization with bioplastic packaging has yet to be investigated, the potential exists to combine the benefits of creating lightweight packaging with the use of bioplastics.

During his discussion of magnetic induction heating for liquid food and beverage processing, George Sadler of ProveIt LLC stated that "The inevitable future of aseptic packaging is all electric."  This proved to be a key theme of the annual Aseptipak conference in Chicago last week, with a survey of brand owners showing the key factors in considering a sterlilization technology for aseptic packaging to be the risk of chemical residuals and operating costs.

In years past, electron beam sterilization has been discussed as a potential aseptic packaging technology of the future.  With the announcements of electron beam based systems over the past year, the focus has turned from technology development toward intial deployments and an expectation of FDA approval of several systems in the near future.  A survey of brand owners at Aseptipak (including major beverage, dairy, and liquid food brands) showed the expectation that electron beams will be the leading candidate for sterilization technology over the next 5 years.

Among the 20 or so presentations, several discussed the role Advanced Electron Beams is playing in helping to realize the chemical free future of aseptic packaging:

GEA Procomac discussed their Sterilbeam cap sterilization system that uses AEB emitter technology

The Farmright Group unveiled their aseptic stick packaging system designed in collaboration with AEB.

Aseptic Innovation announced their collaboration with AEB to deliver a cap sterilization system for their linear aseptic bottle filler.

If you would like to learn more, AEB will review recent product announcements and discuss the process of evaluating and deploying electron beam sterilization for aseptic packaging in an upcoming webinar with FoodBev.com on November 19.  Please register by clicking here.

The theme for the recent Radtech Conference in Niagara Falls, NY focused on the future of energy curable (i.e. UV/EB) technologies and the role they will play in making manufacturing more sustainable and reducing the world's reliance on fossil fuels.  While there are a wide range of potential applications for energy curables, a few are gaining more attention as having the potential to address manufacturing challenges in the near term.

 1.  Industrial Metal Coatings:  UV and EB curing technologies are well established for food package and commercial printing applications.  These technologies are energy efficient, pollution free alternatives to solvent based thermal curing technologies.  Industrial metal coating for automotive, packaging, and appliance manufacturing still typically rely on thermal based curing systems.  With the advancement of energy curable formulations and the development of new curing system designs, metal coaters are beginning to consider UV or EB for new lines or retrofits.

2.  Energy Curable Composites for Wind Turbine Blades:  With the race to increase manufacturing capacity of wind power technologies and the introduction of smaller, less expensive wind technologies, the curing of composites used for turbine blades is becoming a manufacturing bottle neck.  Energy curable composites deliver high performance and cure much faster than traditional approaches.  Novel implementations of energy curing for repair of blades in the field and for high speed manufacturing are being developed.

3.  Printed Photovoltaics: With photovoltaics evolving from rigid technologies produced in discrete batches to flexible technologies produced in a roll to roll printing process, UV and EB offer a high speed, high performance curing solution for conductive layers, protective coatings, and laminate adhesives.

Recognizing the potential for energy curable technologies, The New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA) announced a program with $2M funding for the development and deployment of UV and EB technologies.  AEB is evaluating proposals from New York universities and companies for electron beam research and deployment projects.  For more information, click here.