Ifco RPCs grapes

Following its initial launch at last year’s PMA Fresh Summit in Orlando, Ifco is bringing its new ‘Let’s eat’ branding campaign to Berlin for this year’s Fruit Logistica.

The reusable packaging solution specialist, part of Brambles, will continue the global roll-out of the promotion, which it says reflects the company’s mission and communicates its values and vision to customers and consumers. Indeed, by adopting the tagline, ‘A better supply chain serves us all. Let’s eat’, the company says it is inviting everyone to join the effort to bring fresher, high quality food to tables around the world.

“Our aim is to provide our customers with efficient and sustainable fresh food packaging solutions,” explains Wolfgang Orgeldinger, chief executive of Ifco. “But what’s more, we see our function in a broader context, and together with our retailer and grower partners we thrive to have a positive influence on the lives of billions of consumers all over the world and help make the world a better place at the same time.”

Ifco notes that the campaign reflects the collaboration and human connection it takes to provide consumers with fresh, high quality food – and to do so in a responsible way that helps solve some of the society’s most pressing issues.

Examples of these are the fact that the group’s shared and reusable assets are an important part of the drive for a global circular economy and a zero waste supply chain for the fast-moving consumer goods sector; they help reduce food waste and greenhouse gas emissions by protecting and keeping food fresh longer – reducing the amount of food that ends up in landfills; and they use less water and energy than one-way packaging.

According to the company, the new campaign was developed in collaboration with Ifco’s retailer and grower customers, who understand the efficiency, cost-savings and sustainable benefits the group’s rpcs provide.

Past results, future prospects

Looking back over the past 12 months, Ifco says the year was characterised by a series of innovations focusing on marketing, sustainability and security.

These included the introduction of a range of flexible visual elements enabling tailor-made RPC customisation, RPCs in wood grain style designed for the US market, and the launch of SmartGuardian technology to monitor and control RPC wash processes.

With a 16 per cent increase in annual revenues at group level, 2016 was seen as an “extremely successful year” for Ifco, with the company shipping more than 1bn RPC containers from producers to grocery retailers across Europe.

For 2017 Ifco is expecting continued business growth, especially via a higher RPC penetration within current retail accounts, as well as expansion in areas such as Eastern Europe and South America.