Kortec intros clear plastic can
By Canadian Packaging Staff
Design & Innovation Food Safety Sustainability Bottling clear plastic cans interpack 2014 Klear Can Kortec Milacron LLC plastic cans for food packagingNew ‘Klear Can’ multi-layer, BPA-free PP packaging technology from Kortec provides attractive, see-through plastic cans with extended shellfire.
Rowley, MA—A new multi-layer co-injection technology from Kortec, Inc., allows the production of clear PP (polypropylene) plastic cans for food packaging.
Called the Klear Can, these multi-layer plastic cans provide an attractive alternative to metal cans by providing brand owners with clear, see-through PP in a container that features extended shelflife of up to five years.
Considered an alternative to metal cans for fruits, vegetables, soups, meats and other products, this new technology was introduced by Kortec at Interpack 2014 tradeshow (May 8-14) in Dusseldorf, Germany.
Suitable for retort up to 130°C (265°F), these clear plastic cans have been tested and approved for both retortability and the integrity of the double seam, which was designed to allow the plastic can’s flange to accept traditional (easy open and non-easy open) metal can ends.
Klear Can‘s advantages include the ability to show the quality of the food products to the consumer at the point of sale. Other advantages include:
- Metal can ends for easy opening, hermetically sealed to the plastic can;
- Three-layer plastic construction: PP outer and inner layers, with an EVOH (ethylene vinyl alcohol copolymer) barrier provides a shelf life up to five years;
- BPA-free (BPA or Bisphenol A, is a chemical used to make some hard plastic containers, and has been declared a toxic substance by Canada);
- Options for colored plastic cans, in-mold labels, or standard labels;
- Stackable;
- Molds up to 32 cavities;
- Simultaneous Kortec co-injection process allows same cycle times as single-layer plastic injection.
Another major advantage of Klear Can is that it has been designed so existing metal can-filling facilities can easily shift to the use of the plastic cans, with no need for investing in new downstream equipment.
“These plastic cans use the same steel or aluminum can ends, same filling equipment, same seaming equipment, and the same retorting and cooling equipment,” says Kortec vice-president sales and marketing Russell Bennett. “For the canner and the brand owner, there is no need for significant modifications over what happens today. We see this as a major advantage.”
The first Klear Can introduced by Kortec is the 410-ml (milliliter) size, with a 75-millimeter end. The total can height is 110-mm.
Kortec is ready to work on alternate size cans with companies who require something other than its initial 410-ml offering.
Headquartered in Rowley, MA, Kortec is considered the world’s largest supplier of co-injection systems to the plastics and packaging industries. The company’s systems are used throughout the world to produce high-barrier multi-layer containers featuring three-layer construction that optimizes clarity and strength while maximizing the shelf life of the end-use products.
Earlier this year, Kortec was acquired by Milacron LLC, a global provider of high-precision plastics processing technologies.
For more information on Kortec, visit www.kortec.com.
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