PET bottles, CAN, paper carton: Which beverage packaging is the best?

Beverage packaging is an important process in the beverage industry, which can affect the quality, aesthetics, and distribution of the product. Comprehensive understanding of packaging will help you in selecting the best packaging for your product. Follow this article for helpful information about some popular beverage packaging types.

Contents

Introduction

Among various beverage packaging types, PET bottles, cans, and paper cartons are so popular that you can find products packaged in them in every supermarket. With different materials and production technologies, each type of packaging has its own characteristics that are suitable for some beverages. So which beverage packaging is the best for your beverage?

PET bottles

PET is a special type of plastic called Polyethylene terephthalate. It is commonly used to make food and beverage packaging because of its strength, light weight, versatility, and recyclability. PET bottles are safe as they do not react with food and beverage. Not only safe but it is also economical and can be recycled again and again.

What are the advantages of PET bottles?

Easy to shape: PET bottles are easily molded into different shapes and sizes. It is also good coloring and low processing cost. Nowadays, these plastic bottles are commonly used with many shapes such as square, round, tall, etc. The capacities are also diverse, typically 100ml, 250ml, 350ml, 500ml, 1 liter, etc.

Transparent: This type of bottle is highly transparent which allows customers to see the color and product inside easily. The smooth, glossy surface also makes it easier to print or attach labels and logos. Transparent and shatterproof PET bottles also give off a sense of luxury and exquisiteness.

PET bottle is a popular beverage packaging

Safe: Plastic bottles are not only good for protecting products inside but also safe for human health. PET bottles with tight lids will avoid contact between the product and air or external environmental factors. Thanks to its outstanding features, PET plastic bottles do not react or affect the food and products contained in them.

Lightweight and cost savings: PET bottles are light in weight and do not break easily, so they are easy to transport and store. PET bottles are light in weight and resistant to impact, abrasion, and high strength, making transportation and storage easy. Its low price also makes this type of bottle widely used in packaging food and beverage. Moreover, it is recyclable and can be reused instead of being thrown away.

What are the disadvantages of PET bottles?

Not biodegradable: PET is not a biodegradable plastic and can take hundreds of years to decompose. Burning plastic bottles also creates toxic emissions for the environment. Besides, sorting waste plastic for recycling is hard and uneconomical.

Low heat resistance: PET bottles are lower in heat resistance compared to other types of beverage packaging. When exposed to too high temperatures, plastic will deform and create carcinogenic and mutagenic substances.

Aluminum Can

Aluminum can, also called can, is a container made of thin metal, which is used to preserve and distribute goods, such as food and soft drinks. Every year, about 500 billion aluminum cans are consumed globally, with a staggering 200 billion of those being specifically utilized by the esteemed beverage industry. This statistic highlights the preference for aluminum cans in beverage packaging.

What are the advantages of aluminum cans?

Long shelf life: In general, canned food and beverages possess an extensive lifespan. As aluminum cans are less permeable to air and moisture than other materials, it can protect the content inside. It is also corrosion-resistant and can preserve its integrity for a long time. This makes aluminum can become an excellent beverage packaging.

Durability: One advantageous attribute of cans lies in their remarkable durability. Metal cans have greater durability compared to other packaging materials like glass or plastic, resulting in a decreased likelihood of breaking or shattering. Consequently, they are highly suitable for food and beverage packaging.

Safety: Aluminum cans are good to keep the quality of the enclosed contents. This plays an important role in food and beverage packaging due to the ability to avoid contamination and spoilage. In addition, it is effective in preventing harmful chemicals from affecting beverages they contain.

Lightweight and versatility: Due to its lightweight and versatility, it is uncomplicated to customize and print on aluminum cans for brand recognition and customer appeal. Thus, as aluminum cans are lightweight, they are quite easy to transport, which makes them better than other ways to package drinks.

Sustainability: Cans are made from highly recyclable materials which can be melted down and processed to new products. Compared to other materials, aluminum can

What are the disadvantages of aluminum cans?

Highly acidic products cannot be packaged in aluminum cans. The reason is that materials are corrosive, if used for acidic products may cause a reaction that leads to the destruction of both the product and the can. As a result, cans are not suitable to package acidic products.

Paper cartons

Along with plastic and metal packaging, paper packaging is also widely used in the beverage industry. Made primarily from paper, this type of beverage packaging is believed to be easily recyclable and has the least impact on the environment. High-standard paper boxes or paper cartons are essential in preserving nutritious beverages, especially milk.

What are the advantages of paper cartons?

Better for the environment: The main component of paper is fiber, which is a forestry material in nature. It has higher biodegradation rates and when the paper decomposes, it reverts back to natural materials from our environment. It is also one of the most recyclable materials in the world. That’s why using paper cartons for beverage packaging will be better for the environment.

Easy to print: One of the benefits of using paper in terms of enhancing brand visibility is the convenience it offers in printing your logo or any other designs directly onto the material. Beautiful images and harmonious colors on paper packaging will significantly increase appeal to consumers.

Good barrier properties: The presence of a polyethylene layer within carton boxes offers excellent barrier characteristics that can effectively block air, light and other factors from the environment. This will help prolong the preservation of contents inside, thereby extending shelf life of the products.

Attractiveness: When it comes to selecting a product, customers are inclined to opt for packaging made from paper rather than plastic due to its environmentally friendly nature. A remarkable two-thirds of customers find retail packaging and corrugated box packaging particularly appealing, due to growing awareness surrounding environmental concerns.

What are the disadvantages of paper cartons?

Paper packaging is not as strong as other materials like plastic, tin, or aluminum. The paper box or carton is easily torn and impacted during long-distance transportation, loading, and unloading, leading the outside shell of the box to become warped and deformed. Because it is made of paper, this sort of packaging is particularly susceptible to water, causing inconvenience if transported in rainy or windy conditions, and it is not adaptable during transportation. Therefore, if you use paper cartons for beverage packaging, you must be more careful when transporting them.

About Future Generation Co., Ltd

Future Generation Company Limited is one of the largest beverage suppliers in Vietnam, with 26 years of experience in production and export. FGC is equipped with modern machines such as Hotfill PET and TetraPak, ensuring high-capacity production. FGC strives to achieve our mission to become Vietnam’s leading healthy beverage company. Our factories also meet international standards such as ISO, HACCP, etc. In addition, we constantly innovate our machinery system, strengthen production capacity, and increase productivity.

FGC also provides Private Label Services. With this service, we can help customers in researching and formulating beverages, designing product label packaging, and creating their own brands. This is an ideal solution for small and medium enterprises. Moreover, FGC provides free samples for customers to test before bulk orders. We also ensure delivery as fast as possible.