In October 2011, French food retailer Casino substituted its tinned tomato products (purées, coulis, chopped tomatoes, etc.) with Tetra Recart® cartons made by the Tetra Pak group. In September 2012, Casino then launched an innovative range of soups with chunks (Minestrone, Pistou, Campagnarde), packaged in a 500 ml version of the same cartons. This packaging allows the products to be appertised – that is, cooked and sterilised in the packaging before it is sealed, and can therefore compete with traditional tinned products.
"The goals of this decision were manifold: environmental benefits (life-cycle analysis, cardboard from sustainable, eco-managed forests, no BPA), supply chain benefits (logistics and shelf-stacking made easier by the shape of the carton, leading to weight and space savings), practical benefits for the consumer (a container that is easier to open and can be opened without a tool) and so on, " explains Corinne Aubry-Lecomte, Head of Innovation at the Casino group. Projects to develop further ranges of appertised products are under way.
Soups containing noodles or chunks are also offered by other brands, including soups for young children (other supermarkets, Liebig, Knorr, Blédina, Nestlé, Hipp. etc.). Baptiste Naegelen, Tetra Recart® Market Manager at Tetra Pak, notes that a new entrant is set to launch a range by the end of 2013.
Link to Casino press release (January 2012): http://www.groupe-casino.fr/IMG/pdf/CP20120110.pdf