Issue link: http://osercommunicationsgroup.uberflip.com/i/247165
6 Wednesday, May 15, 2013 STELLAR DISTRIBUTING SEES DOMESTIC, GLOBAL, PERSONAL GROWTH By Danny Sandoval, Salesman, Stellar Distributing I came to Stellar Distributing about three years ago and I am very happy that I did. I have had the chance to learn about all different commodities, pack styles for those commodities and the ins and outs of the produce market as an employee here. Stellar Distributing has given me the opportunity to really branch out on how I think about fruit domestically and globally and has helped me to think about the cause and effect of the things we do on a regular basis. The interactions I have had with customers all over the country and the world has helped me grow in how I deal with people and accommodate from person to person; the correlation INTERCRATE PROVIDES CLEANER PLASTIC CONTAINERS Cleaning reusable plastic containers is a growing concern and a far more important consideration than 20 years ago. The problem is many containers were designed more than 20 years ago and so are not optimized for cleaning. InterCrate, a designer and producer of reusable plastic containers, is thinking carefully about how its container design affects sanitation. "Tight corners, horizontal nooks and crannies, horizontal and vertical ribs meeting, and material that deforms in heat are all problems that were not really on people's radar screen 20 years, when I started," said Justin Elvin- Jensen, President of InterCrate. InterCrate collaborates with its customers to design custom reusable plastic containers specifically for their needs. These custom solutions then become InterCrate's product line for that industry. InterCrate containers, being newer designs, have taken cleanability into account and use only vertical ribs, encompassed by a double wall. This means all water and any residual dirt flows down and does not get caught on horizontal ribs. In 2012, InterCrate made a special custom container for a major blueberry producer to use in a clean room environ- PACKAGING SPECIALTIES, PACMAC WORK TOGETHER TO BRING BEST PACKAGING SOLUTIONS Since 1974, Packaging Specialties has been an industry leader pioneering the use of printed films beginning with PVC stretch films and expanding into a wide array of custom and specialty films. With three strategically located printing facilities, the company provides printed films to customers in 20 different food and non-food industries and offer graphic composition from one-color continuous printing to 10-color process printing. Packaging Specialties has continued to grow and expand its capabilities over the Bank of the West (Cont'd from p. 4) Temple Abney in Fort Collins and Nick Bourne in Sacramento. Together, the two offices serve bank customers across the country in a variety of industries, including fresh produce and fruit, food processing, grain processing and merchandising, timber and farm inputs. In addition, the sector specialists routinely engage the support of the bank's parent, BNP Paribas, to assist U.S. customers with trade and finance activities around the world. This is a strong working relationship that leverages the capabilities of both Bank of the West and BNP Paribas in support of meeting the global financing needs of the food and agribusiness industry. years to include many additional enhancements for its customers. Lamination of many different substrates, various Inno-lock front panel zipper roll stock applications including TOP Zip and 360-full opening zipper, center folding of all substrates up to 50 inches, and Packaging Specialties' proprietary matte finish are all available to its customers. Pacmac, the machine division of Packaging Specialties, Inc., continues to set the standard in the vertical, form, film and seal machinery category. Pacmac About Bank of the West Founded in 1874, $63 billion-asset Bank of the West (www.bankofthewest.com), member FDIC and equal housing lender, offers a wide range of personal, commercial, wealth management and international banking services. The bank operates more than 600 retail and commercial banking locations in 19 Western and Midwestern states. Bank of the West is a subsidiary of BNP Paribas, which has a presence in 80 countries with nearly 200,000 employees. Equal Housing Lender. Member FDIC. © 2012 Bank of the West. Financing subject to approval. For more information, visit booth 940 at United Fresh or go online to www.bankofthewest.com. Produce Show Daily to how a person would treat fruit is very much the same. The fruit that we handle needs to be cooled at different temperatures, packed differently, and priced differently depending on the commodity. This is something that I never had any idea about before coming to this business. Stellar Distributing has also taught me and my fellow employees that we need to constantly strive to be innovative. Consumers love the next big idea and sometimes the next big idea could be a new pack style or even a new label or box. I never know what kinds of things I can create to appeal to the consumer, but we are never discouraged from trying to ment. This design went beyond any previous efforts to enhance cleanability. All corners are extra radiussed, all exposed edges are well rounded, the double wall is shallower but thicker, and extra drained. There are 1,378 vent and drain holes so that the container can rapidly drain and dry. The material is copolymer polypropylene which can be steam cleaned and hot water washed. This kind of development may be of interest to growers or packers who find it hard to keep their containers clean. Some growers use old containers and flats and have a hard time keeping them clean. At some stage, they need to make a change and use a container system they can get clean. The good news is machines can produce all sizes of bags with different gusset and zipper applications at production speeds needed for top efficiency with any type of flexible film requirements. The versatility of the Pacmac machines and the bags it produces are endless and are customized to create unique solutions for each client's needs. Along the lines of versatility, Pacmac has recently introduced its highly anticipated Quad seal VFFS bagger. A concept that until this introduction, was thought to be available only in pre made bags. Another distinction and advantage is that all Pacmac machines and their parts are create new things. At the end of the day, all we care about is making our customers happy and a new pack style or box can make that happen, so that is what we want to do. My ultimate goal is to be able to say that our produce has ended up in every single country in the world. I know that may be a lofty goal, but sometimes it is good to set goals high. Even if we miss, we can still be pleased with what we did achieve. For more information, booth 702 at United Fresh 2013, visit www.stellardistributing.com, call 559-664-8400 or email sales@stellardistributing.com. that there are usually operational advantages with a newer container that can lead to direct savings, and faster cool down times can improve shelf life. Some old legacy plastic containers also don't optimize pallet space and an upgrade to a new system can use space more efficiently, saving money, and increasing capacity. InterCrate is able to show this container, called the ProBox , at booth 1046 at the United Fresh Show in San Diego. For more information, visit www.intercratecontainer.com, call 800-931-8141, email justin@intercratecontainer.com or visit booth 1046. made in Fayetteville, Ark., for consistent high quality and quick service for both machines and parts. Together, Packaging Specialties and Pacmac form a team of professionals with many years of packaging expertise in many different product categories. With Packaging Specialties printed films running on Pacmac equipment, the customer has the assurance and advantage of a team working together to find the best possible solution for their package needs. No finger pointing or blaming, just working together to make all aspects of the package right. For more information, visit booth 1036, go online to www.packagingspecialties.com or www.pacmac.com or call 479-521-2580. TNA: FRESH THINKING ON FRESH FOOD PACKAGING By Shayne de la Force, group marketing manager, tna By 2015, the global fruit and vegetables market is predicted to have a value of $736.5 billion, an increase from $588.2 billion in 2010. With a large, growing market and increased demand for display-ready packaging from retailers, fresh produce manufacturers need innovative and efficient packaging lines to ensure product quality is maintained and the goods reach supermarket shelves fast. Fresh Innovations So what kind of packaging equipment lends itself to this market? As with any packaging sector, productivity and efficiency are the watch words. With packaging plants typically dealing with more than one type of fruit or vegetable, systems that allow for quick changeovers between product types, or the flexibility to accommodate different packaging sizes are preferred. Continued on Page 27