Tony Sharley of Banrock Station on Tetra Paks

This show was published 22 August 2008

Overview

Tony Sharley of Banrock Station tells us about the benefits of using tetra paks for wine.

The tetra brick is a carton made from paper board, polythene (17%) and aluminium (5%). For wine it gives a life of 12 months in the pack vs 6-8 months typically for bag in box. Sometimes have had to ship wine overseas to be packed otherwise it is packed directly in Australia.

Banrock have been putting wine into tetra pak for about 3 years started in Ontario, Canada using the Tetra Brik format and not had any product failure in that market. They are now using the 1 litre Prisma format - a taller more elegant pack.

The primary reason for going to tetra is the environmentally friendly attributes. Banrock as a brand has always been at forefront of environmental responsibility e.g. they have restored wetlands and woodlands, reintroduced endangered species back onto properties and provided an eco-friendly experience for wine tourists. They give a donation to conservation projects for every pack sold.

Greenhouse gas emissions are lower for tetra which produces 4 times less than glass (comparisons based on holding 1 litre of wine). Transporting product is more efficient with the tetra weighing 5 times less than glass. Even before being filled they arrive flat. To transport 1 million bottles = 50 trucks whereas they can transport 1 million tetra containers to bottling plant on just one truck giving another energy saving component. Tetra pak is also now 100% recyclable. It can be recycled back into cardboard products - egg cartons one of the main uses.

The new pack launched into Tesco is called the Eco-mate and promotes the environmental credentials of the pack, on pack. In Australia they have had a fantastic consumer response to the product and hope for a similar response in the UK.

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Music

The music used for the UK Wine Show is Griffes de Jingle 1 by Marcel de la Jartèle and Silence by Etoile Noire.