Packaging: What are your thoughts on the manner in which the Australian packaging industry conducts itself?
Pierre Pienaar: Australia generally follows a trend happening in Europe and the US. Not too often do we set our own packaging trends. Examples of this is in pharmaceuticals and bulk handling of product like grain, flour or sugar.
But contrary to this statement has been in FMCG. Here Australia has found success where we have taken an innovative packaging system from Europe and refined it to the Australian conditions and have come up with an improved packaging concept and /or material.
Packaging: Do you foresee that changing? Will Europe or the US ever watch Australia for ideas?
Pienaar: I think it's a two-fold answer. It's an innate characteristic of humankind to be a trendsetter, and packaging is no different. We in this field want to come up with something innovative that someone else follows. We do want to innovate. I don't see in the future this changing dramatically in terms of us setting trends. There is always going to be an odd company with a new idea. But many times, those new ideas have been where someone took an idea off a shelf in a supermarket and enhanced it. Improved it and good on them.
Packaging: What are the reasons for this?
Pienaar: Our problem generally is our population numbers are too small for us to spend significant amounts of money on R&D and machinery, so we will always have those limitations. We need to innovate but with the volumes or the number of people in mind. So where Europe can afford to do it more expensively at a higher cost, we need to do the same thing at a lower cost. That's an added challenge.
Packaging: Are there any examples on the market of Australian innovation?
Pienaar: if you look on the supermarket shelves, there are examples in the FMCG in packaging specifically targeted at microwaving, in other words, ready-made meals. That is an area where there's been significant changes in the last two years, such as in coming up with a suitable material that is cost-effective.
So again, microwaving in Europe and the States has been going on a long time in ready meals. But we've taken materials that are thinner and cheaper than they were when they originally came out. I know of projects currently being worked on for the FCMG industry where they're taking an existing product and reducing the moisture vapour transmission rates, which results in longer shelf life and improved barrier properties.
Packaging: Discuss the Australian industry on a global basis.
Pienaar: Work has been done in Australia, but many companies are now importing their packaging from outside of Australia. And a lot of it is from Asian countries. Unfortunately, it's money we're losing.
Packaging is a relatively small industry where everybody in the packaging industry knows each other and likewise in other smaller countries. There's a lot of cross pollination: As soon as a unique format or design comes out of a particular country, I know fairly quickly that a product has been launched. There is cross pollination in the industry, because there are only so many, say, tin manufacturers in the world. In terms of innovative new material constructions for that bottle, there is only a limited number, so as soon as we develop something in this country, it will be picked up by another country. We watch other countries and other countries watch us.
Packaging: What are the various trends in packaging design?
Pienaar: Certainly environment plays a very large part. What is packaging doing to the landfill in terms of recycling? And then what about the carbon footprint of packaging and the use of sustainable packaging in the future.
Another aspect that I need to add to this is what are we doing about packaging knowledge not only now but in 10 years time? Even five years time for that matter? We need to increase and encourage more people in the industry or more people coming into the industry to be more educated in this particular field. We're going to reach a state, or a void in the industry, where there will be fewer people formally educated in the science of design and/or technology, and it goes one step further. It's not only the science of design, but also the make up of it. If you take a plastic bottle, for example, what is it made of? What is its construction? How is it manufactured? The various techniques, etc.? This is a very involved science.
It's one thing having experience; it's another thing having the academic and technological knowledge. If someone has spent 20 years making glass, he understands what is going on there, but he/she doesn't always understand the science and technology involved - the influence of the molecules for example. That's the part I can't stress enough, making sure that we have fulfilled the requirements to take the packaging industry technically and scientifically into the next 10 years.
Packaging: Are companies thinking about this like you are?
Pienaar: Certainly, my involvement in large companies, meeting the guys, from time to time at various conferences, congresses or AIP functions, we cross-pollinate, yes. But only to a limited extent. They should not only be looking at their own little patch today. You can't look at it from a narrow-minded perspective. They need to be looking in the long term.
Packaging: What determines packaging developments?
Pienaar: There's always more scope for improvement. Continue to look for opportunities as a point of difference. What must you do differently to catch the eye of the buyer?
If you're buying potato chips and you walk down the potato chips aisle, they all look the same. All the packets are shiny, so someone brought out a non-shiny pack, matte finish, and it caught my eye immediately.
The wine industry is a very good example. About a year ago, wine bottles were always round. But Rosemount Wines came up with a square bottle for some of their wines, which the eye immediately caught on the retail shelves. The bottom was square the top was round.
And from time to time we see it in the confectionery industry - Cadbury bringing out their slabs.
Another example is ready made meals. We're very different from, say, the Asian countries, where they make everything from fresh. We're fast moving and always in a rush. And we're not too fazed if it's not fresh, and we're quite happy in heating something up. Look at the difference between ready made five years ago.
AIP
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