Practical, modern and versatile: combifitMidi makes premium format an all-round talent

CombifitMidi is not only suitable for milk and milk products. The new carton format is extremely versatile and an attractive option for fruit juices or wines.

According to consumer research studies, the "go for the cheapest" concept cannot last for ever. In fact, marketing experts believe that people are no longer just as stingy and tight-fisted as they were in many places throughout Europe after the introduction of the euro which led to indiscriminate price increases and gave rise to anger and frustration. Customers worldwide are now beginning to realise that service-oriented businesses and high-quality premium products offer more value for money.

Bearing this in mind, the development of the aseptic combifit carton gives the manufacturers of premium products a very unusual and easy-to-handle packaging variant which indicates to customers that the product packed in it is something special.

Four format series

combifit, developed and placed on the market by the SIG Combibloc Group, is a stable, slim pack which is curved outwards at the front and inwards at the back making it easy to hold. The slanted top which is typical of the combifit packaging concept provides an optimum pouring angle.

The combiTwist screw cap complements the convenient design of combifit. The carton can be securely reclosed after opening and this prevents the contents from taking on other odours. combifit has meanwhile won the approval of well-known international suppliers of premium drinks.

The combifit product range comprises four different format series. In addition to the format series combifitPremium (available in 500, 750 and 1,000 ml), combifitMagnum (1,500 ml) and combifitSmall (250, 300, 330 and 350 ml), SIG Combibloc has now created a further packaging innovation with combifitMidi (500, 750 and 1,000 ml). combifitMidi bridges the gap between the slim premium formats and the standard formats: Thanks to its larger base area (70 x 72 mm), the carton is very steady and does not tip over easily. combifitMidi makes combifit an all-round talent and a versatile solution for premium products in the milk and juice segments.

World debut in Austria

Alpenmilch Salzburg, one of the leading dairies in Austria, was the first to launch the new carton format combifitMidi worldwide. With 158 million kilogrammes of milk from some 3,500 farmers in the Salzburg area, around five percent of the Austrian milk volume is processed at Alpenmilch Salzburg. The product range comprises 250 articles for the markets in Austria, Germany and Italy. Coinciding with the new names for the two types of milk "frische Alpenmilch" (fresh Alpine milk) with 3.5 percent fat and "leichte Alpenmilch" (light Alpine milk) with 1 percent fat, the products have been given a totally new look with combifitMidi. "The new carton design combines the traditional and the modern. Together with the aesthetic and yet compact carton shape, it supports brand development and the positioning of Alpenmilch," says Martin Schmedes, project manager for combifit at SIG Combibloc.

Flexibility is what counts

The combifit expert at SIG Combibloc knowns that, quite apart from the many convenience advantages, what counts for the beverage industry is the combifit filling process. Martin Schmedes: "All you need to fill products into combifit is a tried-and-tested combibloc filling machine and an ACF applicator. The applicator shapes the carton and applies the screw cap after aseptic filling." Since the applicator is installed downstream of the filling machine, the system can be used to fill products into both combifit and combibloc formats with the same base dimensions. A format changeover at the filling machine and applicator can be completed in about five minutes as long as the filling volume is the same.

The so-called combifit sleeves are the prerequisite for filling products into combifit. They are printed and sealed with a longitudinal seam before being delivered to the customer. Added to this, they are stamped with folding lines to give the typical combifit slanted top. The filling machine at the customer's plant first opens up the composite material sleeve into a brick shape and seals the base. The product is subsequently filled in aspetically with an output of up to 10,000 cartons per hour. Immediately after filling, the beverage carton is sealed ultrasonically in the so-called "aseptic zone". The applicator then shapes the combifit carton and applies the combiTwist screw cap.

Alpenmilch Salzburg is already making good use of the option of varying the combifit and combibloc formats with the SIG Combibloc filling machine system. If the new combifitMidi format is used to position the 1 litre carton of fresh Alpine milk and light Alpine milk, the company offers the 500 ml variant in combiblocMidi. Thanks to the SIG Combibloc machine concept, these two differently positioned formats can be filled on one machine at Alpenmilch Salzburg. This means that the advantages of both formats can be used to the full.

Alpenmilch Salzburg is also using combifitmidi with success in the UHT milk segment of the Austrian market. With the combifitMidi packaging concept, for instance, Alpenmilch Salzburg has managed to win the brand article supplier "Maresi" with three premium products from the UHT segment. These include "Die Leichte", Austria's lightest UHT milk with 0.1 percent fat, "Die Halb Fette" with 1.5 percent fat and "Die Volle" with a fat content of 3.8 percent.

However, combifitMidi is not only suitable for milk and milk products. The new carton format is extremely versatile and an attractive option for fruit juices. The first juice in combifitMidi was launched on the market in December 2004 by Fresh & Co. in Serbia (http://www.nextjuice.com). Fresh & Co is market leader in Serbia with a market share of 55 percent. The company makes use of the flexibility of the SIG Combibloc filling machine system to offer the premium fruit juices of the "Next classic" brand in combifitMidi with combiTwist screw cap and, parallel to this, the honey based juice of the "Medo line" brand (medium price segment) in combiblocMidi.

Added to this, wine in beverage cartons is no longer anything out of the ordinary in the typical wine countries Spain and Italy. The lightweight, stable carton offers convincing product protection. The carton keeps the light out, it is lighter than glass and easier to transport. It cannot break and it certainly cannot give the wine a "corky" taste. These arguments are one of the main reasons why wine specialist Caldirola has been selling the red, white and rosé wines of the "La Vignetta" brand in combifitMidi on the Italian market since September. Operating worldwide, the traditional Caldirola Group has a large product range of well-known brands. For "La Vignetta", Caldirola was looking for innovative and modern packaging that would combine the basic ideas of high quality and innovation on the one hand with the traditional values of the brand on the other. The solution was combifitMidi in the 1 litre format with combiTwist screw cap.

Liquid food and viscous products such as drinking yoghurt, breakfast juices, custard pudding and soya drinks are also packed to perfection in combifitMidi.