Mupy, a reference brand for soy drinks with fruit juice, and SIG, a leading solutions provider of packaging for better, recently signed a partnership for SIG to provide carton packs and filling services to Mupy via a copacker.

Mupy is projecting growth for the coming years and packaging solutions from SIG will play an integral part in achieving their target of doubling turnover by 2025. Mupy, under the new management of Alexandre Moreno, had revenues of 115 million reais and produced 11.7 million liters of soy drinks with fruit juice in 2023.

In order to achieve future growth with soy and juice beverages, Mupy relies on the high speed and flexible filling machines from SIG. The efficiency rate in the production process is very high, with a waste rate of just 0.5 %. In addition, SIG’s filling machines provide maximum flexibility and make it possible to fill products of different categories and viscosities in different volume sizes on one and the same filling machine.

Mupy offers its soy and juice drinks in the flavours grape, pineapple, apple, passion fruit, strawberry, orange, and peach in two SIG carton formats: SIG MiniBloc 200 ml and SIG MidiBloc 1,000 ml.

The combination of juice and soy milk allows Mupy to diversify its product offerings within the juice or plant-based drinks category, catering to a health-conscious market while at the same time tapping into the growing demand for plant-based alternatives, thereby enhancing market competitiveness and meeting the evolving preferences of consumers.

The South American market for plant-based products has been growing in recent years, according to The Good Food Institute Brazil (GFI). The plant-based drinks market grew by 15 % in 2022 and is expected to have an average annual expansion of almost 12 % by 2027. According to data from Bloomberg Intelligence, Brazil is the largest consumer of plant-based foods in Latin America, followed by Mexico, Chile and Argentina.

Today’s consumers are seeking more balanced and nutritious beverage options. The beverage blend of soy and juice offers a unique fusion of fruity flavours from the juice, the creamy texture of soy milk and notable health benefits of soy. Soy is a rich source of plant-based protein, making the beverage an excellent option for individuals looking to increase protein intake. Additionally, soy contains essential amino acids, fiber, and various vitamins and minerals, contributing for instance to immune health. The combination of the nutritional advantages of soy reinforces the appeal of the juice for both health-conscious consumers and producers aiming to offer a wholesome beverage option.

Renata Kasahara, Head of Marketing America South at SIG: “With our agile and flexible filling system, customers are well positioned to respond efficiently to any trend that is shaping the market.”

Consumer demand for plant-based products has been driven by the search for a healthier diet and products that are more sustainable. “Carton packaging is among the most sustainable packaging options. 75 % of its composition is paperboard from renewable sources and at SIG, 100 % of the paperboard we source is FSC^TM-certified. All of the aluminum we purchase for SIG aseptic carton packs is certified against the Aluminium Stewardship Initiative Standards and we produce all our cartons with 100 % renewable electricity. In other words, opting for SIG means responsibly sourced and sustainably produced packaging to meet the demands of Mupy’s consumers”, Renata adds.

With success in 2023, Mupy’s ambitions for the coming years are high. Alexandre Moreno, the company’s CEO, is optimistic about 2024: “In 2023 we grew by more than 22 % compared to 2022 and our plan is to double our turnover by 2025. For this, the partnership between Mupy and SIG is fundamental.”

In the Netherlands, Lipton Ice Tea, a leading global ice tea brand, has made the decision to switch to SIG aseptic carton packs with SIGNATURE FULL BARRIER packaging material, where all the polymers used are linked to certified forest-based renewable materials via a mass-balance system. This decision by Lipton Ice Tea, a Unilever brand, is an important step and contributes to the bigger Unilever sustainability goal of becoming fully net zero by 2039. The switch to SIGNATURE FULL BARRIER is also a significant step forward on Lipton’s commitment to contributing to the circular economy and becoming a fully circular brand.

Lipton has been appreciating the benefits of SIG aseptic carton packs in the Netherlands for many years and its ice tea will now use carton packs with SIGNATURE FULL BARRIER from May 2022. With around 20 million packs sold yearly, this important next step matches the brand’s strong sustainable ambition and meets the demands and expectations of Dutch retailers and consumers.

Lipton, who is committed to using the most sustainable packaging solutions, has chosen SIG’s combifitMagnum 1,500 ml carton pack with SIGNATURE FULL BARRIER. Carton packs with SIGNATURE FULL BARRIER reduce carbon footprint compared to a standard pack*, as a result of the substitution of fossil polymers with mass-balanced plant-based polymers made from tall oil – a by-product of paper manufacturing. All three key raw materials come from certified responsible sources via mass-balance systems: paperboard is from FSC™-certified forests and other controlled sources; forest-based renewable polymers certified according to ISCC PLUS; and an ultra-thin layer of aluminium which protects against light and oxygen is covered by ASI (Aluminium Stewardship Initiative) certification.

^*Results based on ISO-compliant life-cycle assessment CB-100732c: https://cms.sig.biz/media/4440/sig_lca_signature_addendum-combiswift-plus.pdf

Last year’s hot summer boosted UK water drinks consumption by more than 7 % to 4,267 million litres, according to a new report from food and drink experts Zenith Global. This was worth an estimated £ 3,330 million at retail prices.

Sales of plain bottled water in retail packs increased by 7.9 % to 3.4 billion litres, whilst sales of flavoured, functional and juicy waters rose by 7.2 %.

A key driver behind the growth was the warmest summer on record, according to the Met Office. The new soft drinks levy from April 2018, on products with a higher added sugar content, appears to have had a limited impact, after most manufacturers pre-emptively reformulated many products to avoid the tax.

Pressure undoubtedly increased on producers to improve their environmental profile. For the first time, the report documents packaging innovations such as recycled content as well as examining initiatives in recycling and deposit return schemes.

Zenith Global predicts that the UK market will continue to grow robustly, but at a slower pace than in recent years. “Our forecasts to 2023 show an upward trend of 3 – 5 % a year,” commented Zenith Global Senior Consultant Robin Bell. “Debate about plastic and recycling are likely to remain centre stage and we expect to see more packaging from alternative materials becoming mainstream,” he concluded.