T he mouthwash, fire ant killer, plant food and chalk shown on these pages have little in common as products go. Packaging, however, is a different story, as all four disparate products are packed in pouches that were named winners in this year's awards competition sponsored by the Flexible Packaging Assn. (Washington, DC). (For a look at other FPA winners, see stories on p. 46 and p. 62.)
Perhaps the most unusual of these is a stand-up pouch with a 63-mm, wide-mouth screw-cap fitment. One company, Bison Designs, based in a suburb of Boulder, CO, uses the pouch for powdered chalk. The chalk is used by rock climbers as a drying agent to absorb sweat on their hands to prevent slipping. The pack (1) is marketed as being both refillable and water-resistant.
Bison buys the pouch from Nalge Nunc Intl. Corp. (Rochester, NY), which markets it under the brand name Nalgene® Cantene. The pouch is also sold empty, primarily as a product for backpackers, as an alternative to rigid canteens for carrying water. The pouch actually is fabricated for Nalge by Pactech (Rochester, NY). It includes two parts: a neck finish assembly that's heat-sealed to the pouch, and a separate threaded closure that's connected to the neck finish assembly by a strap.
"The advantage of the pouch is that it's 'beefy,' it protects the product, and if [climbers'] backpacks get rained on, their chalk doesn't get ruined," says Dawn Homyak, sales manager at Bison. "When they're done, climbers can take the pack home, refill it and use it for the next trip." The wide mouth makes the package easy for customers to refill, she adds.
