Alliance centers on accelerating the development of self-heating packaging for food and beverage companies.


Self-heating technology developerHeatGenie and packaging products supplierCrown Holdings, Inc.have signed a joint development agreement to integrate HeatGenie’s patented high-efficiency, solid-fuel technology into food and beverage packaging.

Under development since 2008, HeatGenie technology heats beverages or foods within their package. To activate, consumers simply press a button at the bottom of the package. The compact modular heat source at the base of the package is about the size of a small tea candle and weighs just 1.33 ounces. The common, food-safe material within the heater provides high content energy and heat at a controlled rate. The end result is a cup of hot coffee or a bowl of soup, safely heated in the hand of the consumer in less than two minutes.

With the highly efficient solid-fuel system used in the HeatGenie system, consumers will enjoy a larger serving size of product in a lighter, fully-recyclable package. Heating times are four to six times faster and the heater itself is eight times more compact than earlier self-heating systems.

“We’ve looked at a lot of different self-heating technologies and we think this is the right one,” says Daniel Abramowicz, executive vice president of technology and regulatory affairs at Crown. “Together, HeatGenie and Crown have the expertise and resources to bring this unique technology to the food and beverage industry.”

Environmental considerations

Innovating for sustainability and recyclability is also key priority for both companies. There is no need to separate the HeatGenie heating device from the beverage or food can after use. The heating unit components are environmentally safe and recyclable before and after activation. Materials not recovered in the recycling process are entirely benign and normally present in the metals recovery process.

Says HeatGenie CEO Brendan Coffey, “We are excited about this new development opportunity with Crown. As we developed our technology here at HeatGenie we recognized the need to engage with technology partners who had experience and expertise in self-heating packaging. [This] partnership will accelerate development and commercialization.”