Innovation in Manufacturing
1st Place
2-Compartment Snack Cup
Eco-Products Inc.
The entry:
“One of the challenges with pulp molding is the draft angles required for product design, which are generally 30–50 percent greater than traditional plastic thermoforming. This makes deep, complex compartment dividers difficult to execute in functional foodservice packaging, and conventional designs result in dipping compartments that are too large and cause the overall package to be unstable or tip over. We specifically designed the package not to tip. It provides an extremely stable footing and presents the food to the customer in an inviting way. The complex divider, with a deep and curved surface transitioning to linear surface, required innovation in tool making, as well as enhancements in part trimming due to the sloped base.”
Judge’s comment:
“As molded fiber competes with other materials, especially plastics, physical design innovations may be needed. This kind of shape—which takes into account the needs of foodservice operators and their customers—has been difficult to capture in molded fiber until now.”
Runner-Up:
Pita Pit’s New Paper Wrap
Pita Pit Canada
Judge’s comment:
“There’s been a lot of interest in coatings for paper-based foodservice packaging, and this is a great example of innovation, as it uses a vegetable-based biopolymer coating that would replace a traditional wax coating used on paper wraps.”