Productivity

As Northland Cranberries planned the future of its single-serve juices, the company knew it wanted to expand distribution into convenience stores. The company needed vibrant labels that grabbed customers' attention, but even more importantly, it needed those labels to stay put in the hectic c-store environment.

"In convenience stores, single-serve bottles are often displayed in ice barrels," explains Jim Tierney, Northland's manager of branded products. "In that wet environment, traditional paper or paper-poly labels often fall off, leaving the product without brand identification."

To prepare its 16-ounce bottles of Northland 100% Juice Cranberry Blends to hit c-store shelves, the Wisconsin Rapids, WI-based juice maker wrapped them in a film from the Mobil Chemical Company, Films Division (Macedon, NY). Northland, along with converter Hammer Lithograph Corporation, chose to label the juice line with Mobil Label-Lyte LS 447 film. The cut-and-stack material is waterproof and its smooth surface provides superior graphics capabilities.

Additionally, Northland's large bottles of juice—marketed in warehouse club stores—faced bursting problems. "Burst resistance is essential for the gallon-sized bottles, and Label-Lyte addresses this issue as well," says Tierney.

Hammer Lithograph was the first converter to use Label-Lyte film. Lou Iovoli, director of marketing for Hammer Lithograph, says, "It's the ultimate film for moisture resistance and burst strength."

The switch from paper-poly to Label-Lyte labels has had an economic impact, as well. The film's lay-flat characteristics and anti-static treatment have helped increase bottling line speeds up to 40 percent and decrease waste. In addition, the thinner Label-Lyte material allows for more labels to be inserted into label magazines, decreasing machine downtime for reloading. —Irene Cherkassky



For more information on Mobil Chemical Company, Films Division, contact Patti Smith. Tel: 315/966-1084. Fax: 315/966-1623. Or circle 300 on reader service card.