TriMas Packaging’s Affaba & Ferrari prepares tethered cap launch ahead of EU SUPD

20 Aug 2021 --- TriMas Packaging has revealed it will be introducing tethered caps to the market by the end of 2021. The products will feature a new screw and flip concept with a self-locking hinge, ensuring food protection, facilitating convenient consumption and reducing the environmental impact of plastic caps. 

The move comes in anticipation of the EU’s Single-Use Plastics Directive, stipulating that caps and lids on beverage bottles up to 3 L must remain firmly attached to bottles even after opening from July 3, 2024.

The legislation aims to limit the environmental pollution caused by unattached caps by making the closures remain permanently attached to and recyclable with the container.

Several other leading suppliers have announced tethered cap solutions in recent months, including Tetra Pak, Elopak, SIG and Alpla.

TriMas Packaging says it is already becoming apparent that other regions around the globe will introduce similar regulations.

Affaba & Ferrari acquisition
TriMas Packaging, consisting primarily of the Rieke, Taplast and Rapak brands, sees the EU directive on fastened lids and closures as an industry-wide challenge. In response, the company has made significant investments in this field.

At the end of 2020, TriMas announced the acquisition of Affaba & Ferrari, a manufacturer of precision closures for the food and beverage industry and industrial product applications.TriMas’ tethered caps will feature a new screw and flip concept with a self-locking hinge.

“Affaba & Ferrari supplements our existing food and beverage and industrial product offerings, adding new blue-chip customers and a state-of-the-art manufacturing operation to our European base,” explains Fabio Salik, TriMas Packaging’s president.

“Affaba & Ferrari offers proprietary product designs and production capabilities for aseptic applications. The company has earned important food packaging safety certifications, such as the British Retail Consortium/Institute of Packaging (BRC/IoP), the Global Standard and the Food and Drug Administration/Interstate Milk Shippers (FDA/IMS) Compliance, all of which will ultimately enable us to expand our current product offering for our global food & beverage customers.” 

Affaba & Ferrari, located in Borgo San Giovanni, Italy, designs, develops and manufactures proprietary precision caps and closures for customers throughout Europe and plans to expand its technology globally.

The product offering includes aseptic caps for juices, dairy products and sport isotonic/energy drinks, and tamper-evident, child-proof, flex-spout and further caps and closures used in food and beverage, agrochemical and industrial applications.

Heaps of experience
Affaba & Ferrari has decades of expertise and extensive experience in this field, regardless of EU requirements, adds Howard Manning, VP for its Closure Product Division.

“Our customers need to be aware of the possible measures they need to adopt and investments they need to make at an early stage in order to implement against the regulatory backdrop,” he says.

All manufacturers of soft drinks, still-water products, aseptic drinks and beer in the EU must convert their systems by July 2024.

Edited by Joshua Poole