A&R Cartons wins the Pro Carton/ECMA Carton of the Year award

A&R Cartons' Frankfurt, Germany plant won the Pro Carton/ECMA Carton of the Year award for its Alibi Toque Praliné carton using Stora Enso-produced Performa cartonboard. This was the 10^th anniversary of the annual awards.

For the first time, this year's awards featured entries from Canada following Pro Carton's affiliation with the Canadian Paperboard Packaging Association. There were more than 120 entries this year.

The judges' commented that the A&R carton was considered to be an exemplary piece of packaging. "The shape reflected the shape of the hat, or toque, worn by a confiseur and the use of embossing and varnish gave the carton the feel of the fabric used to make the hat," the judges said. "The elegant graphics, the simple opening and closing and the tapered structure all came together to provide an eye-catching and supremely elegant carton containing chocolates made in the same shape as the carton. A truly excellent carton."

Van Genechten Packaging won the most innovative design or new use of cartonboard award for its innovative beer pack for Mitra Liquor Stores.

This year the competition featured a shelf-ready or display packaging category to reflect the importance of this area and the growth in this sector.

The judges were chaired by Satkar Gidda of Siebert Head, one of the UK's leading design agencies. Pascal van Beek of Unilever and Erik Berghem of Kesko, one of Finland's leading retail chains, also were judges. For the first time, the consumer end was represented in the judging process by the addition of Burgunde Uhlig to the panel. She works for Germany's largest women's magazine, Brigitte.

Most Innovative

The judges had seen nothing like this before and the "fun" element was appreciated. The structure was strong enough to safely hold the 12 bottles of beer and it had a handle at one end that made it easy to transport. The shape also lends itself to efficient movement through the supply chain and it was felt that it would have instant appeal at the point of sale. The amusing graphical design adds to the overall impact of the carton and the structural integrity of the carton was seen as being an excellent piece of cartonboard engineering.

Beverages

While bag–in–box is a well-known method of selling wine, this new approach appealed to the judges. They felt it gave the product an up-market look and the clever use of embossing to simulate real wood worked well in the overall design to imitate a barrel of wine. The opening device worked well and the graphics echoed the traditional overall look.

Beauty and Cosmetics

A really inventive approach in a sector where shelf appeal is so important. The leather and "used" look came together to offer something entirely different in a market well known for excellent packaging.

Confectionary

Elegant both inside and outside, this carton would appeal instantly in store and would lead to an impulse purchase. High-quality graphics and bold colors enhanced the point-of-sale attraction making this an ideal gift pack.

A design that truly combines the needs of the customer in use with the requirement for safety and security. The tablets are vacuum packed and held in an internal sleeve that can be removed using the perforated edge so that the part containing the tablets can easily be carried.

Shelf Ready

An excellent piece of display packaging that used a triangular shape to offer a round product. The two-piece tubes fit neatly and securely into the display and the outer cover of the transport pack can be used as a base to raise the height of the display in store.

All Other Food

The judges agreed that this entry provided an excellent solution to lifting the image of the product with the use of cartonboard over the flexible plastic bag while at the same time incorporating into the design the ability to hold a sachet of sauce to mix with the pasta.

An eye-catching and appealing graphical design, supplemented by an interesting opening and closing system, came together to provide an excellent package for this pen.