Intelligent inks for creating a range of Time Temperature Indicators and Open Life Timers for food packaging

Insignia Technologies一直在与英国一家领先的超市合作，帮助提高食品安全和质量，并帮助消费者减少家中的食物浪费。据估计，仅在英国，每天就有超过200万片火腿进入垃圾箱。Insignia想出了一个创新的解决方案，以打开后定时标签的形式解决这个问题。一旦包装被打开，计时器就会改变颜色，以显示产品已打开多长时间。消费者研究证明，该技术有助于减少食物浪费，提高食品安全和质量。然而，以其目前的形式，它太昂贵，不能考虑长期使用。现代包装机的大多数薄膜宽度对于标准标签施加器来说太宽而无法处理，因此需要专门的设备。该设备运行成本高，可用性有限，因此，在生肉、家禽、熟肉和腌肉、奶酪等食品类别上推广标签技术，超过一个或两个SKU（库存单位）是不可持续的。该项目旨在彻底改变技术，创造一个开封后计时器，作为包装材料的一部分印刷，不需要额外的标签。该项目将开发一种创新的变色油墨，可以印刷到可回收的单聚合物结构的封盖材料中，取代目前使用的不可回收的普通多聚合物材料。当消费者打开产品时，印刷的指示器会自动改变颜色，以显示产品已被打开了多久。Insignia与Antonine Inks合作，他们是这种包装印刷油墨的专家，将智能颜料从目前的塑料薄膜格式转移到油墨系统中。该油墨将需要食品接触批准和兼容宽网柔印/凹版印刷工艺。油墨的时间将需要根据不同的制造商在指导方针内的消费进行调整。"

"Insignia Technologies have been working with a leading UK supermarket on a project to help improve food safety and quality and help consumers reduce food waste at home. It is estimated that over 2 million slices of ham go in the bin every day in the UK alone. Insignia came up with an innovative solution to this problem in the form of an after opening timing label. The timer changes colour once the package has been opened to show how long a product has been open. Consumer research proved that the technology helped to reduce food waste and improve food safety and quality. However in its current form it is too expensive to be considered for use long term. Most film widths for modern packing machines are too wide for standard label applicators to handle, therefore specialist equipment has been required. This equipment is expensive to run and has limited availability, therefore a roll out of the label technology for food categories such as raw meat, poultry, cooked and cured meats, cheese is not sustainable beyond one or two SKUs (stock keeping units).This project aims to revolutionise the technology to create an after opening timer that is printed as part of the packaging material, negating the need for an additional label. This would reduce the price point dramatically encouraging mass uptake of the system.The project will develop an innovative colour changing ink that can be printed into a recyclable mono-polymer construction of the lidding material, replacing the normal multi-polymer material used, which is currently not recycled. The printed indicator will change colour automatically when the consumer opens a product to show how long it has been opened.Insignia have partnered with Antonine Inks, who are specialists in printing inks for this type of packaging, to move the intelligent pigment from its current plastic film format into an ink system. The ink will need to be food contact approved and compatible with wide web flexo / gravure printing processes. The timing of the ink will need to be tuneable to the various manufacturers consume within guidelines."