Café Switch is an innovative concept that allows consumers to “pump and froth” the concentrated coffee drink with their thumbs. The pack contains two flexible compartments—each with a ready-blended liquid concentrate—that are squeezed to aerate the liquid until it froths. When hot or cold water is added, the result is a coffee drink authentic enough to fool any barista. The Sara Lee Innovation and Quality Center team worked closely with material supplier RPC Cobelplast (www.rpc-cobelplast.be) to develop the packaging. High barrier material protects the aroma and product taste and guarantees a longer ambient shelf life, but is also flexible enough to allow the pumping action. Café Switch is available in three flavors (Creamy Pleasure, White Innocence, True Kick) and retails in single-serve portions and multi-packs of six.

Offering a wide range of luxury beauty products for all skin types, Panache Cosmetics has recently undergone a makeover of its own. The skincare e-retailer recently enlisted Lisa Tse Creative Consulting (www.lisatse.com) to create a brand identity, web site and packaging to reflect the beauty brand’s prestige and luxury qualities. Launched in July of this year, Panache Cosmetics’ boutique web site presents an exclusive line of beauty brands, including Natura Bissé, Själ and Steven Victor MD. The shopping experience is key, so products arrive in hand-wrapped tissue, are finished with satin ribbon and delivered in signature luxury white bags. “The luxury concept is carried throughout the brand’s philosophy and attention to detail, from the elegant online boutique through to the handmade, limited edition gift boxes,” says creative director Lisa Tse.

Sharing and accessibility were top of mind when UK retailer Tesco opted to replace its existing tub packaging with an easy-open pouch for its Temptations line of snacks. The vertical form/fill/seal pouch from Amcor Flexibles (www.amcor.com) allows the consumer to “push and pop” the pack open through the center of the topside gusset. The bowl-shaped freestanding pouch that this creates has a wide opening, offering full accessibility to the product inside. The pack is ideal for single use, but can also be reclosed with the application of a pressure-sensitive adhesive-coated label. The Temptations line includes chocolate seed mix, blueberry yogurt and raisin, cranberry raisin and macadamia, and fruit nut and seed mix.

UK retailer Morrisons has introduced a new labeling system for its own brand packaging. Dubbed “Recyclopedia”, the system is designed to help increase awareness of what materials can be recycled and where. The system uses three easy-to-recognize symbols for packaging: a “big grin” signifies 100 percent recyclable or home compostable, a “smile” means the package is partly recyclable and a “not smiling yet” symbol means the pack is not recyclable—yet. Each symbol has a “speech bubble” that gives information about what can be recycled and how to find out where. One of the first products to feature Recyclopedia is Morrisons’ The Best Tarte au Citron. A smiling symbol shows that the packaging is partly recyclable. The retailer reports that if every carton bought in a year were recycled, more than six tons of packaging would be saved from going to landfill.