Sustainability, user-friendliness and innovation: these are the central themes of the competition organised by etma (European Tube Manufacturers Association) to reward the packaging solutions most worthy of attention. Here are the winners.
The Tube of the Year contest took place regularly in 2020, brilliantly overcoming the difficulties created by Covid-19. This year, exceptionally, the winners were nominated by a jury of experts at the GDA / etma offices in Düsseldorf, involving brand owners, tube and flexible packaging manufacturers, packaging designers, marketing experts and trade fair representatives, who were asked to select the candidates in the categories aluminium, laminate, plastic, prototypes and sustainability.
Gregor Spengler, etma’s Secretary General, expressed his satisfaction with the quality and the results of the competition: «I’m pleased first of all, of course, with the spontaneous support we received from the external jury and that we could once again carry out our globally acclaimed and traditional Tube of the Year competition successfully this year despite all the adversities. Year after year, this award demonstrates impressively the efficiency and innovative strength of the European tube industry. At the same time, it’s also a reliable reflection of developments and trends in the packaging markets and especially in the tube sector».
He added that the 2020 competition had confirmed this yet again. The numerous consumer-friendly solutions and innovative product ideas submitted are evidence of a strong orientation towards consumer needs. ess of etma’s members and the future competitiveness of the industry.
Aluminium
Two equal winners in the category: the tube for a jam with 66% fruit content of the German start-up Marmetube GmbH, produced by Tubex in Austria, and the one supplied by Alltub Italia for Miller Harris’ hand cream.
The former is made entirely of recycled aluminium, in line with the “ecological” philosophy of the young German producer. The use of recycled aluminium significantly improves the life cycle assessment of the tube, reduces CO2 emissions by up to 40% without affecting the intrinsic qualities of the material: light and unbreakable, it offers excellent protection to the product making preservatives superfluous. In addition, the practical jam dosage is ideal for on-the-go consumption.
Metallic shine with golden reflections and retro style define the elegance of the tube made by Alltub Italia for the premium hand cream “Scherzo” by Miller Harris, closed by an octagonal black cap. Having brilliantly overcome production challenges with the application of a metallic gold-based lacquer and the printing of a fine, delicate lettering.
Laminate
The Canesten® tube from Bayer, which is produced by the Swiss company Hoffmann Neopac AG, took first place among the laminate tubes. Up to now, the cream for treating athlete’s foot was available in a tube with a conventional screw cap. Today, the use of a soft spatula applicator allows the treatment to be carried out without any finger contact, which makes the application of the cream easier and more hygienic. The Polyfoil© laminate protects the product from light, air and water vapour diffusion and prevents migration. Consumers are obviously very pleased with this modern and innovative packaging: in a market test, 90% of the test persons questioned rated the convenient and easy application positively.
Plastic
Second nomination 2020 for Hoffmann Neopac AG, with the “Butterfly” balm tube from Wild Rose (a brand that makes natural and vegan products). The coextruded tube contains 50% post-consumer recycled plastic, which results in a reduced environmental footprint. Also certified for food contact and FDA approved, Farfalla’s packaging demonstrates unequivocally that sustainability and attractive design can go hand in hand: the tube is printed using various techniques (8-colour offset, 2-colour screen printing, hot-foil stamping).
Prototype
Winner in the prototype category, Alltub Italia’s Green Tube contains 95% post-consumer recycled aluminium; as well as not affecting the properties and performance of the packaging in any way, PCR can be processed in the same way as virgin material, using the same internal coatings and combinations of different printing options as well as being matched to the same closures. For the Green Tube, the Italian manufacturer used a water-based clearcoat, emphasizing the ‘naturalness’ of aluminium. The captivating reproduction of a landscape further enhances the “green” concept.
Sustainability
The sustainability award went to the Supercoco and Supergreen tubes produced by Essel Deutschland GmbH (Essel Propack Group Ltd) for a vegan toothpaste under the happybrush GmbH brand. With a post-consumer recycled plastic content of 30%, this packaging fulfils a demanding and complex task, as it has to guarantee all barrier properties and, once pressed, regain its original shape. The thickness of the walls has also been reduced, with a corresponding reduction in the overall weight of the packaging, which has resulted in a 60% saving in resources. The concept of sustainability also influenced the design, which was deliberately reduced in size (limited number of colors and no possible finishing options): the manufacturer’s choice therefore fell on a combination of flexographic/silk screen printing in 3 colors and a matt varnish. The product names and decorative elements were finished with a screen-printed relief varnish.
