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Unilever
- Brasil successfully introduces "Abre-Facil"
easy open can |
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The business climate in Latin America is considerably better today than many had feared after the recession during the latter part of 1998 and 1999. The rapidly rising population, together with the increased consumption of food and beverages, is an indication that we can expect high growth in future Latin American packaging markets. According to the marketeers, Latin America could be the fastest growing consumer market of the 21st century.
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The canmaking
industry in Brazil is taking more than its fair
share of this market growth and already has
a substantial business in the food and drink
packaging sectors. Brazil produces 1 million
tonnes of tinplate annually, of which 75 percent
is consumed internally.
In
the food can market the fruit and vegetable segment
consumes some 1.5 billion cans
which represents approximately only
25 percent of the total food can market.
As Brazil has a large Italian immigrant population
it is one of the largest consumers
of pasta. And where there is pasta
there are tomato based sauces which
are conveniently packed in cans.
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A
rapid expansion
In the early nineties the Brazilian can market
was expanding rapidly. It was during this dynamic
and entrepreneurial period that Rojek, a major canmaker
in Brazil, initiated a development programme to produce
an easy opening device for their three-piece tinplate
food can business. Rojek were already producing a
vacuum release closure for glass jars at that time
and with the cooperation of the German equipment manufacturer
Krupp in Essen, successfully completed
the project with the introduction of
the «Abre-Facil» (easy-open can).
The invention,
which is patented by Rojek, consists
of a can end which has a central
vent hole sealed using a plastic plug.
Once the seal is broken, the internal vacuum
formed during the sterilisation process is released
by removing the plug and the end can be taken off.
An additional benefit is that the end has a reclosable
feature, which quickly attracted the attention of
the major fillers in Brazil.
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The brand name «Cica»
Gessy Lever, the Brazilian arm of Unilever, was an early user of the «Abre-Facil» can and their participation in the fine tuning of the product with regards the food processing of the new end was critical to the market success of the project. Gessy Lever subsequently introduced the new packaging concept for their total range of tomato based products sold under the brand name «Cica».
The total security of the «Abre Facil» end
In
a recent interview, the Marketing Director of Gessy,
Mrs Karin Schmalzigaug, responsible for the food division
and Mr Valmir Gazzoli, Packaging Innovation Manager
stressed that at the time of the launching of the «Abre-Facil»
can, an easy open ring pull end was already on the market
but had not proved to be 100% satisfactory. The total
security of the «Abre-Facil» end was one
of the main reasons for the immediate consumer acceptance
of the can. The reclosability feature was particularly
appreciated for pasta tomato sauces where if the sauce
was not completely used by the consumer it could be
reclosed and stored in the refrigerator for future use.
Stackability
An additional advantage was the stackability of the pack due to the necking in of the top of the can giving greater stability on the supermarket shelf and during shipping. Scuffing of the end during transportation was also avoided. With regards the cost of the easy open can, it is more expensive than the traditional food can, but compares favourably with a conventional can with a ring pull lid. The new «Abre-Facil» design offers a diameter reduction of the end due to the necking in of the top of the can which represents a material saving benefit and cost reduction.
A new and refreshing image
The Cica range has an original packaging design with a unique neck and lid, giving it impact on the supermarket shelves; the use of high quality lithography was achieved using the latest metal printing techniques, creating a new and refreshing image for the brand. Rojek had an exclusivity agreement with Gessy Lever during the concept introduction phase from 1995 until 1999. Since then a number of Gessy Lever's competitors have adopted this new packaging design for their product line.
Impact on sales
In the final analysis, the success of the Rojek packaging
concept is its impact on sales, and Gessy Lever reports
that the «Abre-Facil» steel can was adopted
for their entire core business in Brazil. After its
introduction for Pomarola, sales increased 20% in the
first 12 months with
a 4.3% market share increase in the market segment.
Other producers of tomato-based products such as Cirio and Bestfoods (now part of Unilever), have also adopted the «Abre-Facil» cans for their products. Nestlé uses the can for a variety of chocolate and cream-based products or the Brazilian market.
Outside Brazil there has been serious research into
the use of the «Abre-Facil» can concept
for pet food products where reclosability of the can
after partial emptying is an important feature.
Silgan Containers, a major canmaker in the USA, recently
announced it will start producing the «Abre-Facil»
can (called «Dot Top») under an exclusive
license agreement with the Rojek company.
Evert van de Weg
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