FDBusiness.com

Owens-Illinois (OI), the world’s largest glass container manufacturer has introduced a new bottle to enhance its standard range and help brewers differentiate their premium and craft beers. The new standard combines a champagne-style shape with a highly functional format in terms of size, closure and light weight. It complements an already extensive range of O-I glass packaging available to breweries.

O-I is responding to market needs with this pack which supports the authentic, craft image many brewers are seeking for their premium products. The design retains the deep push up base and shape of a champagne bottle with the convenient 500ml capacity, 300g weight and 26mm crown closure familiar to most UK and continental brewers. This ensures it can run along existing filling lines with very little adaptation of plant settings.

Scott Gibb, O-I Commercial Lead in the UK, says: “According to the Marston’s Premium Bottled Ale Report 2014, the category rose by £90 million to £420 million in the past year and could reach £1 billion by end of the decade. These new beers have to differentiate themselves and brewers are on the lookout for innovative, brand-building packaging to present their products to the consumer in perfect condition. Our new development provides premium quality and appearance in a very accessible format.”

As a standard, the amber glass bottle will be available on a regular basis, so brewers can call off in smaller numbers according to their needs. From an environmental standpoint, not only are the new containers much lighter than traditional champagne bottles, but they are produced in the UK, reducing imports of glass and using up more domestically recycled glass.