According to the standard EN1230-2, comparable to the Robinson test, the new value is: <1 for 12 months for products stored in the original package. Metsä Board’s grades Carta Integra and Carta Solida already meet the value. ‘Off-flavor’ means a taint that may be transferred to food from its packaging.
“Consumer demand for improved food quality, combined with market requirements for longer shelf-life, has set higher standards for packaging,” says Markku Romano, VP Cartonboard Sales in Europe and MEA, Metsä Board. “These drivers, together with tightening regulations, led us to review the sensory properties of our grades so that they continue to meet or exceed new standards.”
Metsä Board carried out substantial measures to research and improve the organoleptic properties of its folding boxboards. Metsä Board attributes the quality enhancement of its boards to these factors:
- Increased usage of BCTMP pulp in the middle layer
- Technical development and new process chemistry to improve middle layer washing
- Fiber knowhow applied to the pulping process
- More consistent boardmaking. As production has concentrated on a small portfolio of high quality grades, it leads to more stable and standardized processes.
Verification of the improved quality included regular sensory testing and long-period off-flavor surveys.
Metsä Board’s folding boxboard grades are manufactured from fresh forest fibers, which are by nature of very high purity and do not contain any printed recycled material. They are manufactured in compliance with good manufacturing practice and management systems certified according to ISO 9001, ISO 14001 and ISO 22000. All chemicals and additives are approved according to German recommendation XXXVI of BfR and USA regulations of FDA, 21 CFR, parts 170-189.
