RICHMOND, Va. — MeadWestvaco Corp. (NYSE:MWV) announced today that it will showcase its newest line of high quality, moisture-resistant paperboard packaging solutions for frozen seafood at the European Seafood Exposition in Brussels, April 27-29.
MWV offers a full range of paperboard solutions for primary and secondary frozen and chilled seafood packaging. MWV’s packaging substrates deliver protection, performance and portability throughout a rigorous cold chain while promoting customers’ brands to discerning consumers. Featured solutions include:
•Printkote® HMR: A solid bleached sulfate paperboard designed to look great on the retail shelf after enduring extremely wet conditions and multiple freeze-thaw cycles.
•Custom Kote® Shrimp Base: A high-performing, single sheet paperboard that offers exceptional strength and durability for seafood products like shrimp that are packaged, stacked and frozen at sea.
•Printkote® Ovenable: Designed to be heat resistant and has the ability to take the seafood from the freezer case right to the oven (conventional or microwave), while also offering the benefits of a unitized platform and a clean white printable surface.
•MWare molded tray: Consumer focus groups have favorably received MWV’s new MWare paperboard tray for chilled seafood and ready-to-eat meals. The heat-resistant tray can be put in the oven directly, resulting in improved convenience for the consumer. MWare also stays cool to the touch and maintains its strength throughout the cooking process when compared to plastic alternatives.
MWV will also be featuring consumer and market insights at the expo that illustrate the impact packaging can have on both consumers and frozen seafood manufacturers.
“As packaging is the first point of interaction with a shopper on the shelf, we feel it is essential for our customers to understand how packaging connects their brands to their consumers and how it can become a competitive advantage by impacting perceptions of a brand and ultimately buying decisions,” said Moser.
In the past year MWV commissioned a number of studies to determine both qualitative and quantitative data about consumer preferences and perceptions while shopping in the frozen foods aisle. MWV also completed research that compares how various paperboard-based substrates withstand damage due to rigors of shelving, transport and moisture on frozen food shelves in retail.
After inspecting more than 28,000 frozen food packages in 100 U.S. grocery stores, researchers found that Coated Natural Kraft (CNK) paperboard had the least incidence of damage on freezer shelves, compared to packaging made with other paperboard-based materials. They also found that packages that were crushed, damaged or opened were more likely to be left on the shelf – even if the product inside was intact.
MWV specializes in working with frozen food customers to create customized solutions that fit their needs. All MWV paperboards are compliant with a full range of rigorous, global food contact and safety standards including USFDA, ISEGA, CONEG, ASTM and RoHS.
MWV will be located at booth # 4-6309 at the European Seafood Exposition.
Source: Mead/Westvaco Corp.
