Due to the success of hot vending machines for canned tea and coffee in Asia and the USA, the market potential for hot beverages is a strategic issue that marketers of canned beverages review regularly in Europe.
To reach consumers in any location and being able to satisfy an implicit need is their ultimate objective. An objective which Nestlé aim to achieve in the UK, with the launch of Nescafé, in self heating steel cans.
It is hard to believe that afternoon tea, which the Europeans consider to be typically English, has taken second place to coffee. The British are now the largest coffee drinkers in the world after the Japanese who consume 10 billion cans of coffee and tea per year.
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Unique tamper-proof feature
The Nestlé concept is the invention of Thermotic Developments who, together with Corus Packaging Plus, designed the prototype. An insert containing water and quick lime, which is separated by foil, is pierced by a button on the bottom of the can producing an exothermic reaction. This reaction heats the contents of the can to a temperature of 60 degrees centigrade. The can also has a unique tamper-proof feature using a red alert indicator to show that the can has not been activated prior to purchase.
Choice of 33 cl steel can
The expertise of Corus Research, Development and Technology was instrumental in the overall design and choice of materials. The conclusion reached by the research group indicated that the three-piece welded 33cl steel acn was the most viable route to take. Prototype cans were produced which were then filed and tested by a consumer panel. Based on the sucess of the initial trials,Corus Packaging Plus chose
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