Nominated in the Readers Award category, Bel Group’s project combines a redesigned lightweight cap with a mono-material PE film solution, which the company says combines functionality, performance and sustainability without compromising child safety. We find out more in this interview.
Could you summarize your entry in fewer than 50 works?
This innovation delivers lighter, safer, more convenient, and more recyclable pouch packaging for Pom’Potes® and GoGo squeeZ®. It combines a 40% lighter snap-fit cap with a mono-material PE film solution, reducing plastic use and improving recyclability while maintaining child safety, functionality, and industrial performance.
Why do you think the judges were impressed by your entry?
The project combines two major innovation levers: a redesigned lightweight cap and a mono-material PE film solution, which is currently being deployed. Together, they reduce material use, improve recyclability, and support the transition towards packaging solutions that can be more easily integrated into circular economy streams.
The most innovative aspect of the cap redesign was the decision to challenge the conventional screw-thread system while preserving the cap’s iconic shape—a distinctive element of the brand identity and a feature recognized by consumers worldwide. Using the TRIZ method, the teams identified the cap’s essential functions and replaced the traditional thread with a snap-fit mechanism. This breakthrough enabled a 40% reduction in cap weight while maintaining secure closure, leak-tightness, ease of opening, consumer experience, and industrial robustness. In addition to the design improvement, the project involved a complete redesign of the cap manufacturing process, including high-cavitation moulds, shorter cycle times, and a leaner assembly process.
Another key aspect of the innovation was the industrial adaptation required to run the mono-material PE film at scale. The transition from an aluminum-based structure, first to a complex multi-material structure and then to a more recyclable mono-material solution, required adjustments to the pouch-making equipment, including film unwinding, tension control, sealing systems, and process parameters. These developments were essential to ensure reliable sealing performance, product protection, and line efficiency while enabling a more circular packaging structure.
The sustainability impact is tangible: lower virgin plastic consumption, a reduced packaging carbon footprint, and improved recyclability through the combination of the lighter cap and mono-material PE film. Importantly, these gains were achieved without compromising child safety. The optimized cap remains designed to meet anti-choking requirements and comply with the applicable toy safety framework.
Can you tell us about the ongoing development of your project?
The lightweight snap-fit cap has already been implemented across all pouch formats for Pom’Potes® in France and GoGo squeeZ® in the USA, demonstrating that the solution can be industrialized at scale in major markets. In parallel, the mono-material PE film solution is currently being deployed, with ongoing work to complete machine adaptations and ensure sealing performance, product protection, and line efficiency.
The winners of this year’s Sustainability Awards are due to be announced on the 11th November at the Sustainable Packaging Summit, taking place from the 10th-12th November in Utrecht, Netherlands. The Summit mobilizes leaders of the FMCG value chain, policymakers, NGOs, recyclers and investors to collaborate, remove barriers and identify opportunities on the road to sustainable transformation.
