Application Description

Our fine feathered friends are flocking to a new line of premium suet from the Perky-Pet Products Company, a Denver, Colorado-based manufacturer of bird-feeding supplies and assorted lawn and garden products. The secret to Perky-Pet's success? Birds think it's the special blend of seeds, nuts and other carefully selected ingredients that the company combines with high-calorie suet, an animal fat product. But for retailers and consumer alike, Perky-Pet's real appeal lies in its packaging - a strong, virtually leak-proof construction sealed with DuPont Surlyn® resin.

Ironically, the same high-calorie suet that makes Perky-Pet's products so attractive to wild birds in the first place also presented the company with a major packaging challenge. Because suet is essentially pure fat rendered from cattle during meat processing, it can liquefy when exposed to heat, causing package "leakers." At the retail level, this can compromise the shelf appeal of the product and make the package feel greasy to the touch.

After evaluating several packaging options, Perky-Pet concluded that conventional suet packaging - shrink-wrapped PVC trays - was no match for warm, liquid suet. So, the company turned to DuPont Packaging and Surlyn® for help. According to Jonathan Curts, director of marketing and product development at Perky-Pet, Surlyn® was chosen for the strong, aggressive packaging seals it provides, even under Perky-Pet's demanding processing conditions. "In tests performed on our product line, Surlyn® consistently sealed through the suet better than conventional packaging," he explained.

Curts noted that leakers are a common problem among Perky-Pet's competitors, so his company's tight, leak-free packages have proven to be a major promotional advantage. "Since we started using Surlyn® , our products have gained widespread acceptance in a very short period of time," he concluded. "Not only has Surlyn® virtually eliminated product losses due to leaks, it also has effectively differentiated Perky-Pet from all other suet products on the shelf."

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