TONY'S TALK - Return of the Enamel Bowl...?

March 1, 2021 Robert Fernandes

When I ‘were a bit of a Lad’ in the 1950’s post-war shortages were commonplace. These particularly affected the packaging of all goods.

Greaseproof papers and ‘white news’ were especially in short supply and it was the norm for Customers to bring in enamel bowls in which to carry away their meal of Fish, Chips ‘n Mushy Peas. Newspapers and magazines were ‘recycled’ for outer wraps, coarse brown papers and even the blue paper that was used for bags of sugar were brought into service. 5” x 3” pure greaseproof paper bags were much sought after to contain a portion of mushy peas!

When I ‘were a bit of a Lad’ in the 1950’s post-war shortages were commonplace. These particularly affected the packaging of all goods.

Gradually things became easier and in the late 1950’s card cups with tab lids were widely used to carry peas, gravies and the ‘new-fangled’ curry sauce. By the late 1960’s BP, Insulpak and LinPac had developed the range of polystyrene (EPS) cups and containers that are still a mainstay of our packaging today.

However, it seems that we are now entering another period of turmoil on the packaging front. Concerns about climate change and the dramatic effect of Sir David Attenborough’s ‘Blue Planet’ series has sparked a global war on plastic packaging. The use of polystyrene is due to be banned later this year in Wales and Scotland and doubtless England and Northern Ireland will follow in 2022.

A tax on other forms of plastic packaging is planned unless it contains at least 30% of recycled content. We have to recognise that plastics have many benefits in terms of the protection and preservation of contents and that the current antiplastic crusade has been driven by widespread abuse through thoughtless and reckless disposal. However, we are where we are and on the plus side LinPac (now Klockner Pentaplast - or KP for short) are developing an expanded polypropylene range (EPP) to replace the soon to be banned polystyrene range. This is a plastic much sought after by the recycling industry although it will be more expensive than EPS but will be cheaper than the alternatives currently.

Other problems have arisen through a massive uplift in freight charges and the dire shortage of shipping containers. Costs for the shipment of containers from the Far East have risen from £1,600-00 to as high as £10,000-00! Many freight companies are choosing to bypass the UK and discharge cargo in Europe with containers being brought across by lorries. This has impacted on the supply and costs of the popular Bio-boxes formed from sugar cane waste in China. Bio-boxes are seen as ‘environmentally friendly’ and they keep Fish and Chips in pristine condition during transit.

We are fortunate in that the other type of ‘environmentally friendly packaging’ becoming more widespread is produced in the UK. Card and Corrugated Fish ‘n Chip boxes also keep their contents hot and crisp, but production is under real pressure. The explosion in shopping online during lockdown has led to a massive increase in the demand for cardboard boxes. Supplies are tight, in some cases rationed and even our edible oil refiners are experiencing a shortage of cartons! Paper mills are under tremendous pressure as the demand for bags, boxes, cartons and trays escalates as manufacturers seek to replace plastics. Delivery times for packaging has lengthened considerably and our supply lines are really stretched, but we do hope to avoid the return of that enamel bowl!

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TONY'S TALK - Return of the Enamel Bowl...?

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