Steuben paves the way in the US: combidome carton bottle now also for low-acid products

Clear the stage for combidome ‘Low Acid’: the innovative carton bottle from SIG Combibloc has now also been launched for low-acid products such as milk and plant-based dairy alternatives. The first food manufacturer to package low-acid products in the cutting-edge new pack from SIG is US company Steuben Foods. Steuben now offers premium nut-based beverages in combidome, in almond, cashew, hazelnut and walnut varieties. Sold under the brand name ‘Elmhurst’, the beverages have a very high nut content. The products were presented to the public for the first time at the Natural Products Expo West, taking place in California in March. They will then be available commercially. With this market launch, combidome is now also available in America for the first time.

Jeff Sokal, Senior Vice-President Business Development at Steuben Foods: “With our new milked nut beverages we’re presenting products that are unique in this segment. The creaminess of the beverages comes exclusively from a proprietary cold-milling process that ensures you get all the valuable nutrients and the full flavor of the whole nuts. Compared to other nut beverages, our products are like home-made – with absolutely no emulsifiers and no thickeners.  The aseptic process ensures that all harmful germs were eliminated, while simultaneously allowing us to capture and stabilize the freshness and quality of our nut milks longer than any anyone else. When you drink a glass of our beverage, you can be sure you’re getting the nutrition of ingredient; it’s as if you were eating a handful of nuts.”

Low acid – higher standards

For combidome Low Acid, the filling process too has been specifically tailored to the requirements of low-acid products. Hanno Geissler, Head of Aseptic Technology at SIG Combibloc: “For the UHT filling of low-acid products, the packs must meet the highest requirements for sterile use, because germs can reproduce much more readily in a low-acid environment such as milk than they can in a product like juice. The sensitivity to light of milk and milk alternatives is another issue. The filling machines for combidome Low Acid and the corresponding carton packs take this into account, so manufacturers can flexibly fill all kinds of beverages”.

Specialised in aseptic packaging

Founded in 1980, today Steuben Foods is one of the United States’ leading companies in the field of aseptic filling and packaging of low-acid foods and beverages. The company works with scores of multinational food companies, and specialises in the processing and packing of products such as milk and milk alternatives. Steuben Foods also supplies products for the food service sector and for many major retail chains and wholesalers in North America.

The partnership between Steuben and SIG Combibloc began in 2013 with the installation of a CFA 812 filling machine to fill combiblocMidi und combifitMidi. The company now also has a CFA 312 for combiblocSlimline and a CFA 1224 for combiblocXSlim in operation. With the newly added combidome filling line, Steuben can now offer an innovative packaging solution that is the only one of its kind in the US – that is essential for differentiation, and the carton also ticks the boxes with regard to convenience and environmental performance.