‘PET packaging is our latest innovation for brewery industry’

Clive Smith is the zonal vice-president, Greater Middle East and Africa at Sidel, a leading global provider of PET solutions for liquid packaging. He tells ODINAKA ANUDU, in this interview, about his firm’s latest packaging solutions for the brewery industry. Excerpts:

You have just unveiled a PET packaging solution for brewers. What plans do you have to reach Nigerian beverage makers, whom you expect to key into this innovation?

Our intention is to target new and local players who are looking for innovative and unique ideas, and a way to stand out in a very competitive market. As mentioned earlier, we believe that new local players will be more inclined to try something new. However, we are not limiting ourselves only to them. We have launched this bottle because we keep getting asked about this topic, and we wanted to give a beer bottle to brewers, brand owners and, perhaps most importantly, consumers that can survive the pressures of pasteurisation, while still being light without having a petaloid base.

This achieves three critical goals at the same time: The glass-like flat base is more attractive to consumers to help them make the switch; the pasteurisation strength means it can be used for the most common lagers brewed worldwide that consumers enjoy drinking, and the lightweight means it can still save brewers costs by reducing raw materials.

Previously, a PET bottle could not do all these three things at once. It was either very heavy, or it had a petaloid base, or it could not survive pasteurisation. So, we will be presenting this ground-breaking innovation to both big and small bottlers.

It is a fact that both producers and consumers have an enduring desire for beverage packaging to be light, sustainable and cost efficient. Therefore, there is an interest in the industry around PET packaging for beer. On the other hand, the issue will ultimately be driven by the consumer. If consumers were happy to choose beer in PET over beer in glass or other materials, the switch would happen very quickly because of sustainability and cost benefits of PET. This switch has been seen in other categories such as oils, sauces and carbonated soft drinks.

There is a conception in Nigeria that beer in glass bottles would naturally taste sweeter and better than that in PET bottles. How do you intend to correct this impression among consumers?

This impression can only be corrected by trying the product in PET. The best judge will be the taste buds. The official development team for this design spent about 12 months carrying out all the geometric and mathematical modelling, simulations and then real-world feasibility tests, which were critical to proving the design works in an industrial environment. Based on the extensive work that Sidel has done in order to become the first to introduce PET packaging for beer, we can confirm that the taste, texture and quality will be exactly the same for beer in PET as it is for beer in glass. If you think about it, many years ago, the idea of packaging milk in anything other than carton initially seemed unrealistic, but looking at the dairy market now, PET continues to rise and consumers are the drivers in this growth.

So, what are you bringing to Nigeria, PET bottle or its technology?

We are producer of the machinery on which our customers can blow, fill, cap and label their bottles. We sell complete lines to beverage producers. We do not as a company sell the bottles themselves, but rather the technology and the machine.

What is the current trend in the PET bottles industry in Africa?

The industry is increasing as consumer demand is increasing across all categories. Trends are emerging in healthy drinks, energy drinks and high-end drinks, thus enhancing the variety.

What is the market value of PET bottles industry?

According to a recent Euromonitor report, the beverage market in Africa stood at 56 billion litres as of 2013, and is expected to grow by 53 percent in volume terms by 2018, with a compound annual growth rate of 9 percent. The top 10 countries in Africa have a beverage market share of 88 percent in volume, with Nigeria being the biggest market.

Where does Sidel operate?

Sidel operates across the African continent. In 2013, Sidel created a new Greater Middle East and Africa Zone, with headquarters in Dubai, UAE, and a supporting office in Johannesburg. With the new and improved structure, we have continued to build strong relationships with partners across the entire region. Our presence in Nigeria and South Africa, among other African countries, has significantly grown in 2013-2014, and we are committed to continuing to focus on this area.

ODINAKA ANUDU