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- First OnVu™ time-temperature indicators for fresh meat and dairy products attract wide interest
- New generation being developed for products with longer shelf lives
- Instant freshness check, increased consumer convenience and confidence, enhanced reputation of brands
OnVu™ website »
News Release in French [PDF, 39 KB]
Ciba Specialty Chemicals and FreshPoint are presenting OnVu™, the revolutionary new time-temperature indicator (TTI) system that shows at a glance the freshness of perishable goods, at Stand B 069 in Hall 4 at the Emballage trade fair in Paris from November 20-24, 2006.
“The first OnVu™ TTIs, designed for meat, fish, dairy products and convenience food with a shelf life of 5-6 days at 5°C, have attracted great interest and are being widely tested in the industry,” said Hermann Angerer, Global Head of Ciba Specialty Chemicals’ Coating Effects Segment. ”A new generation of TTIs, designed for products with a shelf life of one week and more, such as processed meats and specific dairy products, is currently being developed.”
The most common causes of spoilage of chilled food and beverages are too high temperatures during storage and transport. OnVu™ TTIs allow producers, retailers and consumers to check whether perishable products have been correctly stored and supplied, thus helping to enhance consumer convenience and confidence, strengthen the reputation of brands using them and optimize shelf life.
OnVu™ TTIs are supplied either as printing inks or labels and can in principle be used for any product that is sensitive to temperature. They give a visual summary of a product’s accumulated chill-chain history, recording the effects of both time and temperature. Every indicator is tailored to the shelf life and optimum storage conditions of the product it is designed to monitor. By providing essential information on chill-chain history, OnVu™ TTIs also help to optimize shelf life, since suppliers and retailers will no longer need to discard products prematurely to cover for potential spoilage, caused, for example, by incorrect storage.
OnVu™ TTI technology relies on the properties of pigments that change color over time and when temperatures fluctuate. The label or display consists of a reference color and an OnVu™ TTI. Once activated by a suitable light source, the TTI first becomes dark and then grows progressively lighter as time passes and also if and when the ambient temperature rises. Exposure to higher temperatures than those prescribed, therefore, accelerates the lightening process of the color. When the activated color attains the same shade as the reference, the product has reached the end of its shelf life.
About Ciba Specialty Chemicals
Ciba Specialty Chemicals (SWX: CIBN, NYSE: CSB) is a leading global company dedicated to producing high-value effects for its customers’ products. We strive to be the partner of choice for our customers, offering them innovative products and one-stop expert service. We create effects that improve the quality of life – adding performance, protection, color and strength to plastics, paper, automobiles, buildings, home and personal care products and much more. Ciba Specialty Chemicals is active in more than 120 countries around the world and is committed to be a leader in its chosen markets. In 2005, the Company’s continued operations generated sales of CHF 6.1 billion and invested over CHF 270 million in R&D.
About FreshPoint
Founded in Switzerland in 2003 on the basis of research done by Professors Yoav Eichen and Dietrich Haarer, the company continues R&D work in labs in Israel and Germany. FreshPoint is active in innovation in the area of smart packaging and the first product to be commercialized is a novel pigment-based time-temperature indicator.
Late in 2004 FreshPoint and Ciba Specialty Chemicals signed an exclusive global agreement for the development, marketing and global sales of time-temperature indicators. OnVuTM is a result of this cooperation.
For further information please contact:
Media:
Tel: +41 61 636 4444
Fax: +41 61 636 3019 | Investor Relations:
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Fax: +41 61 636 5111 |
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