Via a flexo process designs can now be printed directly onto flat sheets of PVC prior to thermoforming before shaping takes place, whereas with "standard" dry offset technology, printing takes place after the pack has been produced.
Having initially provided packs printed via the new process to Sainsbury's, Sharp Interpack decided to fully commercialise it, joining up with Leading Edge.
Ruth Price, Sharp Interpack's fresh produce market manager, says: "Importantly, pre-printing can provide photographic quality and reverse print – an option Sainsbury's chose to incorporate nutritional information and recipe ideas onto the packaging itself."
Price says the "big challenge" was to develop a process whereby the print would not distort when stretched during thermoforming. "We are now working with Leading Edge to perfect the process for APET and possibly for PP, although the latter will be more of a technical challenge," she explains.
