​​How General Mills’ Sujata Chakki A​t​ta pack bagged a Worldstar

Sujata Chakki Atta is General Mills’ wheat flour product for the US market. It is manufactured and packaged in India and sold in the USA.

As a rule, the wheat flour category is dominated by laminated multiwall paper bag packaging, which tends to develop creases before it reaches the shelf due to intermediate handling and stacking.

Vinod Suvarna of General Mills India, said, “The laminated multiwall paper bag lacks the aesthetic appeal on the shelf. Secondly, due to inadequate material properties, the paper bag gets creased and sometimes results in torn packs in the market. This hampers the brand image.”

In a bid to overcome these challenges and enhance the aesthetic quotient of the pack, General Mills decided to replace the paper bag with non-woven PP fabric bag for the first time.

Suvarna explains, “It has metallised BOPP sandwiched between PP fabric layers. This laminate structure imparts higher strength and better aesthetics.”

The new design has silver and blue streaks and the metallic effect of the substrate makes the pack stand out on the shelf. This is critical to the first moment of truth and therefore directly impacts the sales performance of the product in the supermarkets.

The new pack was thoroughly validated with rigorous delamination and stress test, drop test, stackability, and packing and handling processes. Then it was launched in December 2016. According to Suvarna, this has boosted sales by 5%.

“Not only this, we were able to resolve the package tear and creasing problems. As a result, food wastage has been reduced by 3%. Plus the bag production and distribution efficiency has been bolstered by 8% after the introduction of non-woven PP fabric,” added Suvarna.

This packaging development has not only improved branding and aesthetics but also has positively impacted the business performance of the brand and improved profitability for retailers and distributors. Plus it has boosted bag manufacturing and distribution productivity. This makes it a worthy WorldStar winner.  

General Mills India team will be honoured during the WorldStar Award Ceremony and Gala Dinner, in Gold Coast, Queensland, Australia on 2 May, 2018.