headline press information

Date 15th July 2009 / www.procarton.com
Title Flair and Care, and True Innovation
Text The entries for the 13th Pro Carton / ECMA Awards showed real evidence of innovation and sustainability in carton packaging. A rich choice of new concepts and solutions in all categories.
 

The flair and inventiveness of carton makers across Europe was well displayed when the judging of the annual Pro Carton / ECMA Carton awards got underway in early July. This is the 13th year that these awards have been run and 2009 was no disappointment in any way. In one of the highest entry levels for several years, 122 cartons were entered from no less than 12 countries and they were judged in several different categories. The largest categories were Confectionery and Food but all the other categories were also well represented including the new one for 2009 which looked specifically at cartons made exclusively for volume markets of over 1 million cartons.

The Judging panel was, for the 5th time, chaired by Satkar Gidda of Design Agency, Siebert Head and he commented “Once again I am astonished by the flair and ingenuity of carton manufacturers across Europe. Each year I see new ideas, clever designs and exceptional print and finishing that shows what cartons can do”. He was joined in the judging panel by Guido Brosius of Carrefour, Pascal van Beek from Unilever and Burgunde Uhlig from Brigitta magazine in Germany. This panel of judges therefore represents a range of expertise across the carton supply chain from the design, through brand owner and retailer to the consumer and as such offers the best opportunity of selecting winners that will appeal across the areas of decision making in packaging.

Three years ago at the request of the Judges, a new category was introduced for cartons that best display sustainability characteristics. As Satkar Gidda says “Sustainability is at the very top of the agenda and we feel that it is valuable to offer an annual award specifically to recognise this. In 2009 we were pleased to see an even higher number of entries displaying sustainability characteristics”.

As well as selecting eight category winners and the sustainability winner the judges also chose the Carton of the Year and the entry that showed the most innovation or new usage of cartonboard. At the ECMA Congress in September in Istanbul all the category finalists will be announced and the announcement of the winners will be made at the Pro Carton Congress “Night of Packaging” which is being held in Dusseldorf on 25th and 26th November. All the results and photographs of all entries will be put on the dedicated website at www.cartonawards.com later in the year.

 

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The Jury and Pro Carton-guests: Burgunde Uhlig, Jury member (Brigitta magazine Germany), Peter Klein Sprokkelhorst (Special Advisor), Guido Brosius, Jury member (Carrefour), Pascal van Beek, Jury member (Unilever), Satkar Gidda, Chairman of the Jury (Design Agency Siebert Head), Suzanne E. McEwen ( Pro Carton), Richard Dalgleish (Pro Carton).

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Brosius, Gidda, Uhlig, van Beek: A day of intensive work, …

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… closely studying ideas, ... (Uhlig, Brosius, Gidda)

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… intensely discussing different concepts ... (Uhlig, Brosius, van Beek)

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… and enjoying the creative input in general (Gidda, Uhlig, Brosius).

 

   
Further
Information
Richard Dalgleish dalgleish@procarton.com
Suzanne McEwen mcewen@procarton.com
Barbara Ginter info@ecma.org
Background Pro Carton is the European Association of Carton and Cartonboard manufacturers. Its main purpose is to promote the use of cartons and cartonboard to brand owners, the trade as well as designers, the media and politicians as an economically and ecologically balanced packaging medium.