Ever wondered why Pringles are not packaged in three side seal pouches like all the other chips?
There is a great story behind this question and also great effort that was put in for its creation.
So here it goes. Around 50 years ago, a consumer foods giant set out to create ideal chips which would be identical in shape, size and colour.
Before going further, first let us try to comprehend the problems that were faced which led to the conception of this idea.
Every chip that is created is different as every potato that is used to make it is different.
So to enhance the production efficiency, an engineered mixture with a mere 42% potato content was developed which changed the entire production process.
The consistency and flavour of this mixture remained same for the entire process.
After extensive efforts for almost a decade, a chip in the shape of a hyperbolic paraboloid was developed.
For these perfect chips a perfect package had to be developed.
But filling these chips in sealed pouches would result in crushing of the chips during shipping. To avoid this, the packets would need to be puffed with nitrogen.
The overall result would be that the consumers will receive less quantity of chips. The company wanted to change this.
The company wanted to create something which would allow filling up of more number of chips in a single packet and would also reduce breakage during transit.
This paraboloid shape allowed the chips to be stacked.
As these chips were identical, it led to the creation of a long cylindrical tube by Dr Frederic Baur.
This tube helped to stack the chips as well as minimize their breakage during shipping.
Moreover this tube required less shelf space and lower transport cost.
Pringles were first sold in 1968.
When Dr Frederic Baur passed away in 2008 and the Pringles packaging was used in the most innovative way one can think of to honour the memory of Dr. Frederic Baur. His ashes were interred in a Pringles can.
This company was Procter and Gamble and with this ingenious packaging they not only saved their shipping costs but also kept the chips from breaking by stacking these identical paraboloids in the tubes unlike the chips which are packaged in three side seal pouches which are filled with nitrogen to keep the bags from crushing each other while shipping.
This nitrogen would eat up the space which could have been used to package more number of chips in these three side seal pouches.
P&G was able to fit more number of chips in a single packet than any other chips packet and create economies of scale by selling them nationally. By doing this the company was able to save huge amounts of money that could have been required for the production of Pringles.
So the moral of the story is don’t be afraid of change. John F. Kennedy said that change is the law of life. By just changing the packaging of its product, Procter & Gamble revolutionized the industry.
Cover image courtesy: bristol247.com
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