Watch hundreds of steel cans being produced at a Soudronic canning factory.

Advantages of Steel Packaging

Steel is one of the most commonly used packaging materials by manufacturers, because it is widely available, cost-effective and easy to work with. Steel packages can be customized to just about any shape and size depending on the needs of the business, and the continuously improving quality of steel lets manufacturers use less material without losing rigidity.

Steel as a packaging material is tamper-resistant, durable and has an extremely long shelf life, hence the reason why canned food seems to last forever. At the end of its life cycle, steel is 100 percent recyclable and does not lose any of its properties or qualities in the process. Plus, at least 25 percent of every steel can must be made of recycled steel, and its magnetic properties make it even easier to recover for recycling.

Steel is 100 percent recyclable and the most-recycled material in the world. (Source: Causeway Coast and Glens)

According to the Association of European Producers of Steel for Packaging (APEAL), steel packages are the most recycled packages out of all packaging materials, and its recycling rates keep climbing. In Europe, over 77 percent of steel packages are recycled and in countries such as the Netherlands, Belgium and Germany, rates exceed 90 percent.

New Innovations

Today, there are numerous new technologies taking steel packaging to a whole new level. Higher-quality alloys of steel and innovative new methods for processing steel are making everyday products safer, more convenient and efficient. Here’s some examples to show the advances being made in steel packaging.

Bacteria-free stainless steel surfaces

Researchers at Georgia Institute of Technology recently invented a new way to fight harmful bacteria such as E. coli on steel surfaces. Instead of the traditional antibiotics that are temporary and can aid bacteria in developing resistance, this new process uses an electrochemical etching chemical process to create thousands of tiny nano spikes on stainless steel surfaces. By switching up the levels of voltage and current flow in the electrochemical process, the researchers ended up with a rougher, “spiked” surface.

The spikes are about 25 nanometers long, and will kill both gram-positive and gram-negative bacteria on contact, without damaging human cells. The human eye cannot tell the difference between nanotextured steel and regular steel, and the technology increases corrosion resistance as well.

Nanotextured steel can kill bacterial upon contact without harming human cells. (Source: The Engineer)

Though the technology is new and is awaiting additional tests, it could be a permanent solution to treating bacteria and potentially change the medical and food industries completely. Nanotextured stainless steel can be used not only for packaging, but the manufacturing equipment that come in to contact with food. Researchers are also working to apply the technology to spine implants and other implants that come in direct contact with the body.

The world’s lightest 3-piece aerosol can

German company Henkel and packaging manufacturer Ardagh Group developed a new, sustainable aerosol spray can for Henkel’s beauty products using high-quality steel. The can is a mere 0.13mm thick, using up 15 percent less materials than its counterparts, but is also more rigid. The world’s lightest aerosol can also reduce C02 output by 3500 metric tons and water consumption by 900,000 cubic meters per year.

High-quality steel makes this aerosol eco-friendly. (Source: Pack World)

The development is in line with Henkel’s efforts to contribute to a circular economy. Thus the company aimed to design a packaging material that is not only effective and sustainable to produce, but is also 100 percent recyclable.

As the most recycled packaging material in the world, steel will continue to package food, beauty products, paints, chemicals and more manufactured goods. Especially with advances in the quality of steel alloys and innovative ways to process steel, manufacturers can be assured their products will be safe and sound in effective, cost-efficient, sustainable and safe packages.

“Grab me a cold one.”

We often say as we walk into a bar or a kitchen. And, there is no doubt that ice-cold beer is the best quencher in any occasion. Speaking of cold beer, when we think about drinks in various types of containers, the beverages in cans seem to chill faster and deliver a fresher taste. Especially, steel cans are durable and convenient yet prevalent in everyday living. What makes steel packaging so great? Even a superhero, Man of Steel, is named after this material. Let’s discover more about it from now.

Advantages of Steel Packaging

• Reduce. Reuse. Recycle. From eco-bags to reusable batteries, consumers and brand owners are becoming increasingly aware of issues such as recycling rates. Among the plethora of sustainable materials, steel embodies a special meaning since it is 100% recyclable. Moreover, steel packaging for food can be endlessly recycled without losing any of its quality. Especially due to its magnetic properties, steel can be sorted out easily by a magnetic classifier. This advantage contributes to its easy and low-cost recycling process, encouraging more reuses of steel. In fact, more than 50% of global steel production is generated from steel scrap.
  Canned products don’t require the energy of refrigeration during storage. In addition, as steel packaging technology advances, the steel packaging is getting stronger and lighter while requiring less material in production process. The lighter weight of the packaging allows more product to be shipped using less fuel – meaning less money and better environment. Steel packaging’s unlimited reusability and adaptability are worth to compare with the Man of Steel, the human race’s eternal superhero.

• Designer’s Paradise When you walk in to a giant grocery store or a convenient store anywhere in city areas, a vibrant collection of diverse soda cans is a hard thing to miss. The flexile and easily applicable quality of steel allows steel cans to adopt millions of trendy and interesting designs, which appeal strongly to the consumers. Steel cans can be applied with tactile finishes of distinctive quality, leading designers and brand owners to benefit from the material’s outstanding characteristics. From embossing, matte finishes, leather-like coatings and lacquering, the array of innovative decorations is not bound to a limit. Splendid colors of steel packaging surely let the beverage cans to stand out on a crowded shelf at the store.
  Some of the large global companies are collaborating with designers or brands to create an extraordinary steel packaging that bestows a premium value and a unique aesthetic quality. Moreover, despite the economical impression of tins, many manufacturers are using steel packaging for high-end cosmetic products or luxurious candles as an innovative means of powerful consumer appeal.

• Safety First
  In every scene of summer vacation at the beach or by the pool, the existence of soda cans and food cans doesn’t seem so surprising. It is almost natural to hold a drink can at sporting events and concerts whereas beer bottles or any other glass container are often prohibited due to safety reasons. Cans, especially steel cans, are safe because they don’t shatter.Steel can’s durability is only one of many safety benefits of the material. Canned fruits and vegetables are sealed in steel cans within a short time after harvesting. And during the canning process, micro-organisms that could affect the food quality are eliminated by heating the sealed steel container. After all these packing procedures, the food inside stays its freshness for a long period as its steel packaging provides perfect protection against oxygen, light, moisture and other contaminants.

More about Steel Cans, Steel Packaging Council
Among millions of councils in the world, there is a special council for steel packaging as well. The steel packaging promotes steel as a choice of material for a variety of products by expanding the viability of steel packaged products with consumers and brand owners. According to the information from the Canned Food Alliance (CFA), the Steel Packaging Council is a founding member of the CFA. As the alliance consists of steel makers, food processors and affiliate members of the industry, the Steel Packaging Council fosters steel-based solutions to develop existing markets to a great extent. American Iron and Steel Institute specifies that investors of the council are USS-POSCO Industries, ArcelorMittal Dofasco, ArcelorMittal USA LLC, United States Steel Corporation, Severstal North America and more. These investor companies provide materials that are used to make steel food cans that embellish our daily lifestyles. In this respect, POSCO is currently producing and supplying black plate which is a prior material of tin plate, the key material of steel can production.

While providing such safety and convenience to people around the world, steel packaging are preserving resources for future generation to live in a better world. This amazing qualities that contribute to the human race, certainly seem similar to the Man of Steel who is all about the world peace without asking anything in return. With excellent recycling abilities, unique design qualities and the consumer-friendly features, it seems that steel packaging has the potential to surpass the value that Superman offers.

Check out the cool infographics below for more interesting stories!

• http://steelcan.com/
• http://www.smartcansolutions.com/pdfs/Steel_Food_Can_Facts.pdf