Bosch launches ‘first’ hermetic airtight packaging machine for smaller chocolate bars
Bosch Packaging Technology has launched what it says is the first machine capable of hermetically sealed single-wrap die fold packaging for small to medium sized chocolate bars.
Bosch Packaging Technology has launched what it says is the first machine capable of hermetically sealed single-wrap die fold packaging for small to medium sized chocolate bars.
The Starpac 600 HL, from Bosch’s subsidiary Sapal, hermetically seals chocolate bars, thereby making the packs airtight and reducing the risk of contamination when compared to other methods such as non-sealed die fold or double twist.
Bosch said its machine, which is available globally, allows chocolate manufacturers to produce die-folded smaller premium bars that give a better-quality appearance than bars packaged using flow wrapping.
Premium-look
Marc-Alain Rohner, sales manager at Sapal said: ‘Our machine is the only machine that can do die-fold on single wrapping material.’
‘The difference is mainly aesthetic. Flow pack is often used for cheaper products and has a less attractive look’. He said that for small products, between 5-40g, the only option for manufacturers in the past had been flow wrap.
‘In Europe, this machine will allow you to sell products in smaller sizes with expensive ingredients,’ he said.
According to Rohner, the machine is best suited to products containing almonds, pistachios and puffed rice.
He added that: ‘Products using wafer sheets need to be hermetically wrapped, if they are not they get soaked and lose their crispiness.’
Costs
He said that the cost of the wrapping material for the machine was roughly the same as for a non-sealed die fold pack done with foil and paper because it uses oriented polypropylene (OPP) film.
However, he added that the price of the machine was roughly double compared to standard die-fold machines.
Hermetic sealing can also double the shelf-life of chocolate products and avoid cross contamination from flavours emanating from other products positioned near the chocolate, said Rohner.
The Monster with 21 Faces
He said that hermetic sealing for chocolate had become germane after a spate of terrorist incidents in Japan over 20 years ago.
In 1984, a group calling itself The Monster with 21 Faces, laced chocolate bars manufactured by a handful of major Japanese confectionery firms manufacturers with cyanide, which Rohner said was the moment when tamper evidence became favoured.
Source: Bosch Packaging Technology
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