Page 3 - Packaging News Magazine Mar-Apr 2021

March-April 2021 | www.packagingnews.com.au COMMENT | MANAGING EDITOR 3 Smart moves from
paddock to plate
THE age of digitisation is well and truly upon the packaging industry. If you were in any doubt before – and I’m sure the seasoned readers of PKN were not – you need only flick through the pages of this issue filled with articles on a range of smart technologies in use from the factory floor to the supermarket shelf, and you’ll get the picture. Many pictures in fact, as visual evidence abounds of the ubiquitous smartphone scanning labels and codes. And along with that we now have a growing set of abbreviations punctuating the con- tent: AR, VR, AI, QR, uQR, RFID, NFC, 2DB ... the list goes on.
In our Cover Story on page 20 and our Active & Intelligent packaging feature, starting on page 32, we learn that the once fledgling sector of intel- ligent packaging is coming into its own. The pandemic has given it wings, lifting it from emerging tech- nology and landing it squarely in the mainstream.
The expanding bank of disrup- tive technologies to address issues of authentication, traceability,
counterfeiting, food waste and consumer engagement are now being employed to meet the chal- lenges of a disrupted world.
With supply chains under pres- sure to deliver personal protection equipment, test kits, and vaccines – and product safety in the spotlight –track and trace technology has come to the fore as a means of authenticating genuine products and identifying counterfeits.
Smart labels are also being used to provide COVID-19 clearance for Australian and New Zealand meat products, with QR codes linking to coronavirus swab results to expedite product clearance at customs points, as you can read in our Track & Trace feature on page 28.
Beyond authentication and safety, and full supply chain traceability from paddock to plate, intelligent packaging’s biggest untapped poten- tial lies in its ability to connect brands and consumers by telling brand stories, creating memorable interactions and experiences, and delivering essential information.
Brands switching on to this oppor- tunity are using augmented reality activations via smartphone apps, for example Winerytale (see page 34), although Dreemar’s Bill Atta tells us his team is hard at work developing AR activations that don’t require an app at all (see page 36), which will remove a perceived barrier to entry for many marketers.
Packaging intelligence has of course also infiltrated the factory floor. Our feature on Robotics & Automation, starting on page 42, delivers a robust dose of futuristic factory scenes that we learn are now closer to reality than we might have thought. Industry 4.0 and the Industrial Internet of Things is injecting intelligence that’s shaping the smart factory, influencing not only machinery design but also its instal- lation, integration and servicing.
All up, the packaging industry is making some smart moves at an awe- inspiring pace, and PKN is here to deliver the intelligence you need to move your business forward. ■
Lindy Hughson
Managing Editor & Publisher
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Intelligent packaging is coming into its own. The pandemic has given it wings, lifting it from emerging technology and landing it squarely in the mainstream.”
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