FRUIT Focus is always a well-attended event – and for Sirane it’s an annual opportunity to show-off new developments in the fruit and fresh produce packaging sector.
And with a range of other fruit & vegetable packaging solutions available – including absorbent fruit pads, cushioned absorbent pads for soft-fruit, fruit pads offering ethylene absorbency, breathable packaging films, and absorbent crepe packaging – as well as the innovative Life+ packaging system – there’s plenty of reasons to visit Sirane on stand 13.
Fruit Focus – which is in East Malling, Kent, on July 19th – is one of the fruit industry’s most popular gatherings, and the perfect place to show off our full fruit-packaging range.
This year we will joined on stand by a representative from Ilip, an Italian company with who Sirane has been working in partnership on an innovative fresh produce packaging system.
Life+ combines an anti-mist punnet, an absorbent pad and packaging film – and has shown significant shelf-life extension. The Life+ system is suitable for use with a wide range of fruits.
Jeremy Haydn-Davies, sales director, said: “Fruit Focus is always a great show, especially if the sun comes out… and we’re looking forward to seeing some old faces down there as well as making new contacts in the trade. Our anti-microbial technology will get plenty of attention – and rightly so as it is a terrific step-forward in absorbent packaging. However, we’ll have plenty more for visitors to our stand, including breathable and compostable films.
“And Ilip will be on hand to discuss the innovative Life+ system which was launched at Fruit Logistica in Berlin earlier this year, and has since been shown at numerous trade shows.”
Life+ won the prestigious gold award at one of the shows – MacFrut – in Rimini, Italy.
Jeremy Haydn-Davies added: “We’ve also got the absorbent fruit pad range, including cushioned pads for berries and other soft-fruits and ethylene-absorbing pads that can be supplied without the added anti-microbial technology. For fruits such as cherries we can supply absorbent cherry pads or a lower-absorbency crepe.
“For many fruits – in particular soft and delicate fruits such as berries of all types, stone fruits, grapes etc, we’ve got packaging solutions that can make a real difference, helping to protect the product from potential damage and positively impacting on the shelf-life.”
However, it is ABV – our anti-microbial/anti-bacterial absorbent fruit packaging solution – which will undoubtedly be the new technology that generates the most interest.
Simon Balderson, Sirane MD, said: “For many years Sirane has been at the forefront of research into shelf-life extending technology for fruit in particular, and this latest product development combines ground-breaking work with existing technologies to create another major step forward. This really is headline news for the fruit-packaging world.
“Many companies have tried to deliver anti-microbial packaging, but this is an effective way of delivering the technology from within the pack right to the heart of the problem.
“Fruit often travels vast distances before it ends up on a supermarket shelf, and there is so much that can be done to help everyone in the supply chain reduce the amount of waste.”
Sirane’s new Dri-Fresh ABV pads contain a blend of natural bio-flavonoids and organic acids which work together to naturally enhance the fruit’s own protective defences. Combined with the absorbency within the pad, they offer an outstanding level of protection.
The technology can be supplied as standard absorbent pads or incorporated into our Dri-Fresh Soft-Hold pads – absorbent cushioned pads which prevent damage to soft-fruit during transportation. The technology is activated by moisture – functioning only when needed.
Simon Balderson added: “Shelf-life extension within fruit, particularly the soft-fruit world, is a big deal throughout the industry, and even just a few extra days makes a big difference.
“Soft-fruit has a short-shelf-life, meaning additional shelf-life is very valuable. It has little in the way of protective skin, so is vulnerable to fungal and bacterial degradation. As it is soft it is also vulnerable to damage during transportation – which can often be a long way.
“This is a completely natural solution to those problems that is very effective. What we’re doing is effectively taking the fruit’s own natural defence mechanism and supplying it when needed in a concentrated form. The results so far have proven to be very impressive.
“The combination of flavonoids which are anti-oxidants and anti-microbial, with organic acids including citric acid and ascorbic acids is harmless, as all elements are found naturally within fruit. It is clean, simple, and effective. Nature itself often has the answers.
“This complements our existing shelf-life extending technologies, including absorbent cushioned pads, anti-fungal pads, ethylene-absorbing pads and labels and more.”
Fruits that could potentially benefit from Dri-Fresh ABV or Dri-Fresh Soft-Hold ABV include all types of berries – strawberries, raspberries, blackberries and blueberries – as well as other fruits vulnerable to damage: tomatoes; apricots; kiwi fruit; nectarines, and grapes.
Sirane’s Dri-Fresh Soft-Hold absorbent cushioned pads are already being shipped in large quantities to berry producers across North and Central America – some of the biggest soft-fruit growing regions globally – with the product starting to appear on supermarket shelves worldwide, including the UK. Dri-Fresh Soft-Hold ABV will only increase this demand.
Sirane is a highly innovative product development-to-manufacture company based in Telford, Shropshire. It has four divisions: food packaging; medical and healthcare; industrial and horticultural. The company’s specialisms include absorbent solutions.
For more information on any products in our fruit packaging range, or to arrange an appointment at Fruit Focus, visit www.sirane.com or email karl.heggarty@sirane.com.
