It has been a momentous day at Isle of Man Creamery today as their new milk carton production line went live. After 12 months of planning, a trip across Europe from its Italian manufacturers and ?800,000 later, the new carton machine arrived safely at its new home in Tromode where it will be put to work packaging our milk in the latest high quality, custom designed, screw top cartons.
This investment is just one of many recent developments at Isle of Man Creamery, as the Manx dairy farmers’ cooperative strives to continually improve its award winning produce and the services it provides to customers on the Isle of Man and all over the world. Fast and efficient, the new carton machine enables Isle of Man Creamery to introduce a resealable screw cap to its 1 pint cartons for increased convenience and keeping quality. Two new pack sizes will also be introduced: a 189ml carton for the snacking and sandwich market and a 950ml carton for families that will be sold across the Island for ?1. The new cartons will all keep the milk fresher for longer.
The new carton machine also enables Isle of Man Creamery to update all of its milk packaging with a brand new format. These new designs will focus on the Isle of Man’s celebrated dairy farming heritage and now also features a section dedicated to promoting the good work of locally registered charities, which are invited to apply to advertise their services on the new milk cartons.
Andy Thornton, Manufacturing Manager of Isle of Man Creamery said: “It’s great to see the new line finally here and working after 12 months of planning. It was like Christmas when we opened the huge crate and saw the brand new machine inside. The packaging line is the latest state-of-the-art equipment which will give us many years of high quality production capability. The Italian manufacturer, Galdi, is the market leader for this type of equipment and the quality of the machine is superb."
Managing Director, Findlay Macleod said: “The investment in this new machinery is more than just an upgrade. This state of the art machine is a clear sign of our commitment to our most important consumers: the people who buy fresh local milk and support our farmers. The new packaging brings two major advantages. First and most importantly, it brings an improvement in the quality of our packaging by drastically reducing, if not actually eradicating, the possibility of leaking cartons and maintaining the integrity and great taste of our fresh Isle of Man milk. Second, it also gives us the opportunity to create a medium-sized pack that gives consumers a convenient quantity for just one pound, which is something we have wanted to do for some time. We are really pleased with the results from our trial runs, and we hope our local consumers will be too.”
The new packs will start to appear in stores from Monday 4th May, complete with a fresh new design. Findlay explained: “The bold new look balances a contemporary feel with a nod to the Creamery’s 80 years of heritage. It’s a clean design that also proudly emphasises the local provenance of our fresh Manx milk.”
Photo - New carton designs for the pint-sized milk carton.
