Campbell, Pepperidge Farm honored for thinking outside the box

CAMDEN, N.J. — Campbell Soup Company and its Pepperidge Farm division were among those honored for consumer-driven innovation in product packaging at the DuPont Awards for Packaging Innovation.

Campbell’s Go soups, the company’s first soups packaged in flexible, stand-up pouches in the U.S., received a Silver award for innovative packaging. The packaging was designed to appeal to younger soup lovers with “eye-catching graphics and a dash of humor,” and features a greater surface area than traditional soup packages. The custom-made pouch also has a clear gusseted bottom that helps it stand on shelves or in a microwave.

“Our goal as part of Campbell’s innovation team is to solve consumer needs that may not be achieved through product innovation alone,” said Mary Gregg, director of packaging for Campbell North America R&D. “Pouches are contemporary and incredibly relevant to younger consumers, who purchase many of their favorite foods and other products in pouches. For the new Campbell’s Go soups, we believe our custom pouches are the right package for the right product.”

Pepperidge Farm’s packaging team was honored for a second consecutive year, this time with a Silver award for adding a first-of-its-kind Seal Tab re-close feature on its Pepperidge Farm Baked Naturals Cracker Chips bag. Created in collaboration with Sonoco Flexibles, this development was based on consumer insights that pointed to a key need: convenient re-close features in flexible packages.

“For consumers who want to eat only a portion of the chips and keep the rest of the product fresh, the best option was to use a chip clip or creatively fold over the bag. We knew there had to be a better way,” said Eva Peters, director of packaging for Pepperidge Farm R&D. “We worked with our packaging supplier to create a unique solution built right into the front panel of the package so the consumer couldn’t miss it.”

The packaging features a large and visible re-close tab with a pressure-sensitive adhesive system incorporated into the film lamination. The result is greater surface area and better adhesion that easily re-closes for the consumer and also solves a challenge for marketing — brand appeal even when the bag is re-sealed, something that alternate methods could not achieve without obscuring the brand name.

Coca-Cola, P&G Gillette, Clorox and Heinz were also among those recognized for packaging innovations by DuPont.

Now in its 25th year, the DuPont Awards for Packaging Innovation is the industry's longest-running, global, independently judged celebration of innovation and collaboration throughout the value chain. Each year an esteemed panel awards diamond, gold or silver honors based on excellence ratings in one or all of three categories: innovation, sustainability and cost/waste reduction.