Ciba OnVu smart packaging has time-temperature indicators

Ciba OnVu smart packaging has time-temperature indicators

Ciba presents a new generation of time-temperature indicators for smart packaging at the IFFA trade fair in Switzerland.

Ciba is presenting revolutionary new OnVu new time-temperature indicators (TTIs), which show at a glance the freshness of perishable goods, at the stand it is sharing with Bizerba, no. B70/90 in hall 6.0, at the IFFA trade fair in Frankfurt/Main from May 5-10, 2007. New OnVu TTIs, designed for packaging of chilled products with shelf lives of up to 20 days, will be on show for the first time.

“The first OnVu TTIs, designed for meat, fish and convenience products with a shelf life of 5-6 days at 5°C, have attracted great interest and are currently being field-tested for the first time by major German retailers under hands-on conditions,” said Hermann Angerer, Global Head of Ciba’s Coating Effects Segment. ”The new generation of TTIs now allows us to offer freshness monitoring for enhanced confidence in self-service products with a shelf life of one week and more, e. g. processed meat such as sausage, dairy products, ready meals and other convenience foods.”
OnVu™ time-temperature indicators are tailored to the respective products they are designed to monitor (labels).

The most common causes of spoilage of chilled food and beverages are too high temperatures during storage and transport. OnVu TTIs allow producers, retailers and consumers to check at a glance whether perishable products have been correctly transported and stored, thus helping to enhance consumer convenience and confidence, strengthen the reputation of brands using them and optimize shelf life.

OnVu TTIs are currently supplied as labels and will in future also be available as printing inks for application straight on the packaging. TTIs can in principle be used for any product that is sensitive to temperature. They show clearly whether the chill chain has been maintained, by recording the effects on the product of temperature fluctuations over time. Every indicator is tailored to the specific shelf life and optimum storage conditions of the product it is designed to monitor. By providing essential information on chill-chain history, OnVu TTIs can also help to optimize shelf life, since suppliers and retailers will no longer need to discard products prematurely to cover for potential spoilage, caused, for example, by incorrect storage.

Developed jointly by Ciba and FreshPoint, OnVu TTI technology has been built into an integrated system by Bizerba, a complete solution from label printing to fully automated production, which combines in one step labeling, charging and UV filter application.

OnVu TTI technology relies on the properties of pigments that change color over time and if temperatures fluctuate. The label or printed display contains a reference color in addition to the OnVu TTI. Once activated by a suitable light source, the TTI first becomes dark and then grows progressively lighter as time passes and also if and when the ambient temperature rises. Exposure to higher temperatures than those prescribed, therefore, accelerates the lightening process of the color. When the activated color attains the same shade as the reference, the product has reached the end of its shelf life.

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