Subscribe75 years of success: European beverage carton has its roots in Düsseldorf.
75 years ago, Günter Meyer-Jagenberg applied for the patent for a pioneering idea: the “perga” packaging, the first beverage carton in Europe. The development of this idea laid the foundations for a worldwide suc-cess story which continues to this day in the form of ever new shapes and inno-vative closures from SIG Combibloc.
In 1878, Ferdinand Emil Jagenberg opened a paper wholesale firm in Düssel-dorf. His sons Max and Emil, both engineers, expanded the business in the years that followed: they designed machines to process paper - into folding boxes, for example.
The impetus for the beverage carton followed in the 1920’s. Günter Meyer-Jagenberg, a nephew of Emil Jagenberg, travelled to the USA. Here, he dis-covered the American beverage cartons which had so far been widely unknown in Europe. In principle, they were quite similar to Jagenberg’s folding boxes. Back in Düsseldorf, Meyer-Jagenberg drew on the know-how of the family-owned company and further advanced the folding box production.
In 1929, he applied for the registration of the trademark for a paraffin-coated “conical fat bag”. One year later, on November 8, 1930, he applied for the patent for “perga”, a water-resistant paper receptacle with folding closure as well as the equipment for its production. “Perga” is the first flexible packaging in Europe and the predecessor of today’s packaging systems from SIG Combibloc.
The packaging became a mass product only after World War II. In the 1950’s, beverage cartons started to boom, symbolising the modern lifestyle in the times of the German economic miracle. Soon the Jagenberg plant in Düsseldorf be-came too small.
And there was no building land available, either. Consequently, the management looked out for a new location of its headquarters and addi-tional workforce. In 1958, they found the right place in Linnich near Aachen. A new production line was built in the halls of a former factory. PKL (Papier- und Klebstoffwerke Linnich) was established as a subsidiary - and renamed SIG Combibloc later on.
Based on the “Perga” idea, blocpac was a new packaging system established in 1962 to meet the growing demand and the requirements of the market - e.g. with regard to stackability. “blocpak” became the company’s first large-scale production packaging. The former paraffin coating of the carton is replaced by a polyethylene coating.
International Breakthrough
The company had its international breakthrough in 1976 with the introduction of combibloc as a packaging system for the aseptic filling of long-life foods. The system is technically superior because it enabled aseptic filling not only of milk and juices, but also of soups, sauces and desserts with chunky ingredients. And the success story goes on - with a large number of shapes and closures.
Perga-Patent
75 years ago , Günter Meyer-Jagenberg applied for the patent for “perga”, a water-resistant paper receptacle with folding closure as well as the equipment for its production. “Perga” was the first flexible packaging in Europe and the predecessor of today’s packaging systems from SIG Combibloc.
Foto Gruppe
With a large number of shapes and closures, SIG Combibloc continues the worldwide success story of the aseptic beverage carton.
November 2005.