Benefits don't taper off

Dairy Foods, June, 1998

United Dairy Farmers (UDF), Norwood, Ohio, wanted packaging with impact when it restaged its half-gallon line of frozen desserts.

"In our markets, we're a recognized leader in premium ice cream and we wanted a premium package to go with our premium products," says Jim May, UDF's v.p. of sales and marketing.

UDF's Homemade brand of premium products is hitting the stores in the new cartons about the time you read this story, making UDF one of the first dairy companies to market its frozen desserts in a new half-gal paper tapered round rectangular carton manufactured by Tetra Pak Hoyer.

"Once we identified the new design, we conducted focus groups to make sure our customers shared our enthusiasm," says May. Consumers in those test groups loved the package: 74% said it would be "extremely" or "very" influential in determining their purchase, and 90% could not identify any elements of the new package that they disliked.

Privately owned UDF started operations in 1939 when it opened its first retail dairy store, and the company now has more than 200 stores. It introduced its Homemade brand of premium ice cream ("The 'premium of premiums,'" says May) in 1982.

The brand now includes 50 flavors in regular, light, low fat and no-sugar-added varieties of ice cream and frozen yogurt. With the new carton, each of these varieties will have a distinctive carton sidewall and lid color for ease of identification in the dairy case.

Better shelf packout

"We've been using the squat round tapered paper carton for our Homemade brand, but it has some negatives," says May. "It doesn't fit in the freezer door and makes poor use of freezer space. In addition, its two-piece paper lid sometimes separates."

Other containers on the market also have problems, notes May. Folding cartons are structurally weaker and more likely to leak, he says. Round canisters are harder and messier to scoop. Straight-wall rounded rectangles have structurally weak side walls and their loose-fitting lids are more likely to leak, according to May.

The new cartons eliminate these problems. Features cited by May include:

* Rounded side walls provide better scoopability, convenience and geometric stability.

* Recessed bottom has greater stability to maximize packaging strength.

* Handy size fits in freezer door.

* Color-coded side panels differentiate selections.

* Wide oval opening has a self-sealing system that helps prevent leaks.

* Offset printing provides eyecatching, high-resolution graphics.

* For retail stores, the more efficient size allows 33% more shelf pack-out and 43% better pallet utilization than UDF's present carton.

"Consistently in focus groups, consumers said 'Homemade brand tastes like it should taste' and we believe that the new carton combines appearance and performance to enhance this image," says May.