The Swiss glass producer Vetropack is presenting a weight-reduced returnable bottle at the upcoming Drinktec. This is up to 30 per cent lighter than conventional glass bottles and is also more resistant to abrasion.
After the unintentionally long Drinktec-The thirst for innovation and personal exchange in the food and beverage industry is great: „Five years is a long time, but despite the Covid pandemic, we have launched many important innovations,“ says Evan Williams, Chief Commercial Officer of the Vetropack-Group. „We are all the more eager to finally be able to present them live to an international audience of experts. Trade fairs such as Drinktec are an indispensable platform for us to meet our customers in person and discuss current topics and trends with them."
The improved performance glass packaging presented at Drinktec takes these requirements into account. According to the company, this is a particularly stable and material-saving form of lightweight glass bottle, which were developed at the Vetropack Innovation Centre in Pöchlarn, Austria. The new bottles are not only 30 per cent lighter than conventional standard returnable bottles, but are also more durable and resistant to abrasion.
However, the development goes even further, as Daniel Egger, Head of Innovation, explains: „We are currently working on a labelling system with which we can apply a data matrix code to the bottles. In this way, we make every single one traceable. In the long term, we are aiming for a more user-friendly return and recycling system with 100 per cent reuse of the bottles.“
In order to achieve this and other sustainability goals, Vetropack Group is also continuously investing in the modernisation of its production sites. In addition to the plant in Straža, Croatia, another production facility in Kremsmünster, Austria, was recently qualified for the basic glass manufacturing process. Vetropack is also building a new plant in Boffalora sopra Ticino near Milan, which is scheduled to go into operation next year.
Source: Vetropack
