Eggs, like some packaged meats, suffer from confinement odor, which can be off-putting for both the consumer and others around when the product is opened.

However, an absorbent patch developed by Sirane for vac-packed lamb has enabled a unique snack egg to be brought into the food-to-go market without any off-putting smells.

The Original Egg Company, a new niche brand under the Stonegate family, last month launched the Snack Egg – a single-portion, shelled hardboiled egg convenient for people who want to eat ‘on the go’.

It’s not just the product that is unique; a bespoke and innovative flow-wrap packing machine means the BRC-standard British free-range eggs are individually wrapped within minutes of being cooked, offering the best possible shelf life for the consumer. The company has also worked with Sirane to develop an absorbency patch.

“This product was originally developed as an odor-absorbent pad for vac-packed lamb, which suffers from a significant confinement odor problem, and can also be used for other meats and fish. The ‘egg problem’ though allowed us to develop a small patch in a reel format for products which solely need to address an odour issue,” says Jeremy Haydn-Davies, Sirane sales director.

Trials on an absorbent pad made by Sirane revealed a substantial 9 percent drop in vac-packed meat being returned by consumers to one major UK supermarket. Returns are a significant issue for vacuum-packed meats such as beef, poultry, lamb, gammon and pork – as unpleasant odours can cause customers to wrongly think food is off.

“Packaged eggs suffer exactly same the same problem - confinement odour,” says Simon Balderson, Sirane’s managing director. “It’s great that in solving a problem within the lamb trade we’ve also managed to help out those people who want to open up eggs for lunch without upsetting colleagues.”

Sirane

+44 1952 230055; www.sirane.com