Aluminum/Plastic Composite Food Containers

Applicable Business AreasFood Industry

Target Applications Food containers

The amount of food wasted by food-related businesses and households in Japan was estimated to be 6 million tons in fiscal year 2018, so the food industry is making great efforts to overcome this problem by extending the shelf life of foods.

However, with an aging population and a diversity of tastes, food containers need design features such as ease of opening, safe use and disposal, and guaranteed food safety. Almic-Can is a food container made from laminated aluminum foil and resin sheets, which provide high-barrier properties and ease of opening as well as “decoratability”. This container can thus contribute to solving the issue of food waste while providing ease of use and convenience for the consumer.

What is Almic-Can?

It is a food container made by press-molding a laminated aluminum foil and resin sheet. The aluminum provides the high-barrier properties while the resin sheet, consisting of a sealing layer and a peeling layer, provides the easy-peel property combined with the high decoratability and molding flexibility of the resin container.

This container has been on the market for more than 30 years and has been used in a wide variety of applications as outlined below.

Almic-Can
Food is preserved well in good condition1
Food is preserved well in good condition2
Food is preserved well in good condition3

Basic Characteristics of Almic-Can

  • High-barrier and long-term storage properties
  • Easy to open
  • Good decoratability and shape flexibility

High-barrier and long-term storage properties

The use of aluminum foil in both the lid and container prevents the ingress of oxygen, moisture, and light from the exterior, thus preventing oxidation, drying, and discoloration of the food. After the can is filled with food, it can be sterilized by heat and pressure. Because food in retort pouches can be heat-sterilized while still sealed, the loss of water-soluble nutrients or those that may be easily oxidized is minimized. The sterilization processing allows food to be distributed and stored at room temperature.

High-barrier and long-term storage properties

Our tests have shown that after one year of storage at 35°C, the amount of ascorbic acid remaining in food stored in Almic-Can was approximately double that of food stored in packaging materials made by other companies. For detailed data from our tests, please refer to the results shown in our technical article.

Easy to open

The resin sheet consists of a peeling layer and a sealing layer. The peeling layer can be easily peeled away from the base material layer, with the sealing layer being completely welded, thus making the container resistant to internal pressure, easy to open, and leak-proof. The can is designed to have a standard opening strength of 15N, which is considered to be easy for people to open, combined with a high sealing strength of 50kPa or higher. This allows children and elderly people to open the can easily.

Easy to open

Decoratability and shape flexibility

Because CPP (cast polypropylene) is used for the outermost layer, containers can be printed to give a high-quality feel by making use of the metallic luster of the aluminum layer. It will thus be possible to produce containers with high levels of visibility and quality of design depending on your ideas.

Decoratability and shape flexibility

Need More Information?

For detailed data on the high-barrier and easy-opening properties of Almic-Can, please refer to the technical article.

Contact Us

Please don't hesitate to contact us if you have any questions.