MINNEAPOLIS - General Mills Inc. of Minneapolis switched to an oriented polypropylene film package for increased productivity, protection and better appearance for its Nature Valley Granola Bars. Toray Plastics (America) Inc. of North Kingstown, R.I., supplies 60-gauge, metallized OPP for the inner layer of the wrapper, which has a 75-gauge OPP outer layer reverse printed in six colors. General Mills saved materials and costs in this cold-sealed wrapper compared with its previous heat-sealed package based on four layers of paper, polyethylene and metal foil.
``The (four-layer) structure is a traditional approach that has worked well over the years in terms of rigidity, thermal stability and barrier properties,'' said John Holovach, new product/market development manager for Toray. ``But when you challenge that tradition, you realize great opportunities.''
Companies that convert to cold-seal process realize materials savings on average of 10-20 percent, he said. Other benefits include reduced waste and less wear on equipment.
Tel. (401) 294-4511; fax (401) 294-2154.
