International beer brands Heineken and Amstel have been launched in a new four litre PET keg with an integral tap supplied by APPE, a division of LSB.The new “Tapje” keg is a small draft-beer system, which consumers can use at home. It offers an innovative cost-effective alternative to the traditional crate of beer, with greater flexibility for consumers. It has been launched in the Netherlands prior to introduction into other markets.
The Tapje features APPE’s proprietary monoBLOX barrier technology with oxygen scavengers, resulting in a robust container with superior barrier performance that protects the integrity of the beer by keeping out oxygen whilst keeping in the carbonation.
Once open the beer remains fresh for 30 days and so is ideal for occasional drinking or for parties. The Tapje is ready for use after being cooled for ten hours in a refrigerator. A separate beer cooler is available which reduces this time to an hour. A coloured indicator on the front of the keg shows when the beer has reached the correct temperature for consumption.
Heineken chose to work with APPE because of the company’s dedicated Research and Development Centre, which has extensive experience in the development of complex packaging solutions; this included bottle and preform development as well as the closing disk, all of which took into consideration the downstream assembling operations at Heineken. APPE’s superior barrier technologies and the knowledge and product management support the company is able to offer were also key to Heineken’s decision. A joint APPE and Heineken team worked together for several months.
Michel Goovaerts, Plant Director of APPE Belgium said “We are delighted to have worked with Heineken on this project, which has resulted in a truly innovative product. This has been a perfect example of how APPE can use its knowledge and experience in design and manufacture to create exciting packaging that keeps contents in perfect condition.”
