An attractive appearance is not everything. Hygienic packaging is just as crucial, especially in the food sector. Over 180 companies will be presenting their solutions and novelties in packaging technology and materials at iba, with over 50 exhibitors bundled in the “iba.OPERATE!  Packaging  & Processing Solutions” section in hall B1.

Everything here revolves around packaging solutions, processes and materials for wholesale bakeries, dough manufacturers, trade, and the confectionary and supply  industry. Visitors are guaranteed a 360° view of the market and its innovations: from  thermoformed packaging to repackaging. The exhibitors include renowned companies such as MULTIVAC, Cavanna, Niverplast, Bosch Packaging Technology, GHD Hartmann, ILAPAK, THEEGARTEN, Bradman Lake, ULMA Global Packaging and many more from China, Denmark, Germany, France, Great Britain, Israel, Italy, Japan, Lithuania, the Netherlands, Poland, Switzerland, Spain, Taiwan, Turkey and the USA.

Advancing the success concept

“After the successful premiere at iba 2015 and the very good feedback from exhibitors and visitors, we are once again going to bring together packaging solutions and processes for products such as bread, pastries, confectionery, snacks, pizza, toast, pies, frozen dough pieces, biscuits and cereal/chocolate bars in one section,” explains Claudia Weidner, iba project manager. “iba.OPERATE! Packaging & Processing Solutions will provide visitors with all the information they need and help them find the right partners for their company.”

In a global market in which logistics and transport are becoming increasingly important, there is a very high demand for suitable packaging solutions.

These are expected to fulfill key tasks, particularly in the food industry: They should offer ample protection to the products during transport, the  products should remain fresh and well preserved, and the packaging must comply with all applicable food safety and food hygiene regulations. In addition, the packaging processes should also be efficient – because speed is crucial at high volumes. Exhibitors at iba will be showcasing their machines as well as complete solutions and components that meet all these requirements, ranging from tubular bag machines, thermoforming and film packaging solutions, bag filling and closing machines, multi-pack systems, feeder systems, bread and bun packaging machines, labels and labeling machines, and corresponding packaging materials.

Novelties honored at the iba premiere

Visitors can look forward to numerous novelties and premieres. For instance, ILAPAK (Hall B1, Stand 310) will be presenting its new horizontal flow wrapper at iba for the first time, says Christian Romualdi, the marketing communication manager. The company, which develops packaging solutions based on the requirements of its customers, will be showcasing its machine in action at its stand.

Bosch Packaging Technology (Hall B1, Stand 320) will be presenting various machines at iba, including a roller former for bar production and a flow wrapping line for pastries with a robotised feeder. The company is well aware of the market requirements following decades of experience in the industry, emphasizes the product manager, Andreas Schildknecht. “From the packaging of bread rolls and biscuits, to vertically packaged cereals and bars in all variations: There is hardly a product that we are yet to package.” The trend shows an increasing demand for flexibility of process and packaging machines as well as complete solutions that are optimised for gentle product handling and high food safety. Bosch Packaging Technology always has the right answers e.g., to the special challenges presented by gluten-free pastries. These have a different dough consistency due to the ingredients and the products (e.g., biscuits) are very fragile. Bosch has therefore developed a two-in-one biscuit packaging system to address this problem, a flow wrapper that is very gentle with the biscuits and that has significantly minimised waste.

MULTIVAC (Hall B1, Stand 351) will be presenting a complete range of solutions for packaging bread, bakery products, biscuits and snacks. In addition, the company will also present two chamber machines, a compact thermoforming packaging machine and a tray sealer. “In the bakery industry, there is a clear trend away from frozen products and towards MAP packs,” explains Tanja Nickels, press and public relations manager at MULTIVAC. “These are proving to have benefits, particularly for the overall logistics chain, since many bakery products, which are packed under modified atmosphere, can be stored without additional chilling.” Various compact machine models for producing MAP packs will be presented at the trade fair.

In addition to the solutions presented at the “iba.OPERATE! Packaging & Processing Solutions” section in hall B1, more packaging solutions will also be exhibited in other halls and will range from baker’s bags to decorative packaging for confectioneries. One can filter through all the exhibitors based on the product and offer group in the new iba market place. This is available at the following link: www.marktplatz.iba.de.