Plastic Packaging Technologies history

Though cardboard itself had been invented several hundred years earlier in China, the cardboard box wasn’t created until 1817 by Sir Malcolm Thornhill.

Aluminum particles were first extracted from bauxite ore in 1825 at the high price of $545 per pound.

Styrene was first distilled from a balsam tree in 1831.

Vinyl chloride, discovered in 1835, provided for the further development of rubber chemistry.

Fast forward to the Industrial Revolution: this era (starting from about 1760-1840) gave way to major technological advancements, as the demand for better quality packaging increased.

Collapsible, soft metal tubes, today known as “flexible packaging,” were first used for artist’s paints in 1841.

Several years after the first commercial paper bags were created in 1844, Francis Wolle invented a machine capable of mass-producing paper bags.

Plastic was first revealed to the world in 1862 at the Great International Exhibition in London by Alexander Parks.

Paper may be the oldest form of what is known today as “flexible packaging,” however, it wasn’t until 1867 that paper originating from wood pulp was developed.

Patented in 1870, “celluloid” could not be molded, but rather carved and shaped, just like ivory.

Nine years later (1875), the can opener was invented.

One development that enhanced the process was the first automatic rotary bottle making machine, patented in 1889.

In 1903, an American inventor named Michael Owens invented an automatic glass-forming machine, which could produce more glass bottles in a single hour than a team of glass blowers could in an entire day.

After the turn of the century (1905), the machinery was invented to automatically produce in-line printed paper bags.

In 1912, Brandenberger built a machine to manufacture cellophane film.

But a sturdier multi-walled paper sack for larger quantities could not replace cloth until 1925 when a means of sewing the ends was finally invented.

Another breakout invention would follow with the creation of Tupperware in 1946.

1954: Zipper-seal bags, created by Robert W. Vergobbi, were initially intended for use as pencil bags, but their versatility soon turned them toward food storage.

The origin of the aluminum can traces back to 1959 when Coors introduced the very first aluminum can, as well as the concept of recycling the cans by paying one cent per can returned to the brewery.

1960: Sealed Air Corporation engineers Marc Chavannes and Alfred Fielding brought the world bubble wrap.

By 1965, over 75% of brewers in the United States were using Fraze’s can.

But it became apparent that the bags could do much more, and Ziploc® bags were introduced in 1968 as food storage bags.The first baggies and sandwich bags on a roll were introduced

Polyethylene Terephthalate (PET) bottles were first patented in 1973 by chemist Nathaniel Wyeth.

The Polyethylene Terephthalate (PETE) container only became available during the last two decades with its use for beverages entering the market in 1977.

2010: Heinz Dip & Squeeze was the first innovation for ketchup packaging in 42 years, allowing customers to choose whether to dispense or dip into the sauce.