Marie Redding, Senior Editor05.31.23
The Tube Council of North America is celebrating this year's Tube of the Year Award winners.
The Tube Council is a non-profit organization dedicated to providing educational resources, information, and networking opportunities to professionals within the tube industry. Each year, the awards recognize the best squeeze tube innovations—in designs, materials, and processes.
Fifty-one entries were submitted this year, by 12 Tube Council members across various categories, including beauty, personal care, and pharmaceutical. The sustainable tube category greatly outpaced other award categories this year, in the number of submissions.
This year's judging panel included Beauty Packaging's publisher, Jay Gorga, and editor-in-chief Jamie Matusow, along with—Hao Lin, professor, and Magy Georges, program development specialist, Package Engineering Program, Rutger's University; R. Andrew Hurley, Ph.D., associate professor, Packaging Science Program, Clemson University; Julie Rice Suggs, Ph.D., academic director, and Bianca Hurley, executive director, The Packaging School; Michael A. Sirico, sr. manager of new product & package engineering, LG H&H Americas/The Avon Company; and Sarah Ribner, founder, Piper Wai Natural Deodorant.
Here are all the winners, in every category—and more about each winning tube.
Photos above: Trophy by Pexels/Anna Shvets; Versed Skincare by Viva; Dove Hair Therapy Glow Restore by Viva; Jergens by Berry Global; Hawaiian Tropic sunscreen by Edgewell and Viva
'Tube of the Year' & Best Personal Care, Gold: Viva & Versed Skincare
The "Ted Klein Tube of the Year" and the Gold Award winner for Best Personal Care Tube is:- Versed Skincare's Buff It Out AHA Body Scrub by Viva
Viva Healthcare Packaging/Viva IML Tubes produces and decorates the 6 oz tube for Versed Skincare's body scrub.
The injection-molded polypropylene tube is a peachy nude color with a matte finish. Viva created the monochromatic look by using an in-mold label decoration on a white tube, and pairing the tube with a custom color-matched cap."The center-dispensing cap has a 5mm orifice to accommodate dispensing the thicker scrub formula," the team at Viva states.
The team at Versed chose to use the highest level of PCR in the tube and cap. The monomaterial package consists of a tube, cap, and in-mold label that are all PP for easy recycling.
Best in Personal Care, Silver Award Winner: Viva & Dove
The Silver Award winner for Best Personal Care Tube is:- Dove Hair Therapy Glow Restore by Viva Healthcare Packaging/Viva IML Tubes
Viva produces and decorates the dual-chamber 4 oz tube for Dove Hair Therapy Glow Restore.
The natural-colored tube is an innovative design that showcases two formulations side-by-side within the same tube. The serum is on the left side, and the conditioner is on the right, each in a 118 ml chamber.Since the serum and conditioner have different viscosities, the flip-top cap has different orifice sizes on each side. A 3 mm orifice accommodates the serum, while a 1.3 mm orifice allows the conditioner to be dispensed at the same rate. The user dispenses both products at the same rate and mixes in the hand prior to applying to the hair.
Viva decorated the tube with artwork featuring metallic ink accents in gold, silver and bronze. The team at Viva decorated the tube withn a clear polypropylene in-mold label, printed in Flexo inks with a glossy finish. The gold pearl cap completes the luxe harmonious look.
This tube has an innovative functionality, a luxe look—and it's also eco-friendly. The tube, cap and in-mold label are all mono-material PP—and compatible with the rigid polypropylene recycling stream.
Best in Personal Care, Bronze Award Winners
There's a tie for Best in Personal Care, Bronze Award. The winners are:- Jergens Sandalwood Triple Butter Blend by Berry Global
- Hawaiian Tropic Sheer Touch Serum Invisible Sunscreen SPF 50 by Edgewell and Viva
Jergens Sandalwood Triple Butter Blend is in a 7oz laminate polyethylene tube by Berry Global.
The tube is decorated using a flexographic printing process to showcase a watercolor-like background image combined with photographic elements. Gold foil accents elevate the artwork, and a soft-touch finish gives the tube a premium feel. Challenging aspects included an extremely tight registration on a custom pearl substrate.Hawaiian Tropic's serum sunscreen is in a 3.3 oz tube with an airless pump produced by Edgewell and Viva.
The airless pump's sleek shape delivers a premium, elevated look. The white tube is decorated in a cream and brown color palette with an in-mold label. The label features an EVOH barrier and a matte finish.
The tube stands up on its clear glossy PP over-cap, which fits over a custom color-matched glossy bronze airless pump. The tube, pump, cap, and in-mold label are all made of polypropylene (PP), which makes recycling easy.
Best Sustainable Tube—Gold Winner
- For Skin's BB Cream, in a tube produced by Alltub, is the Gold winner.
Alltub produces For Skin's BB cream tube—and it's 100% aluminum, including the cap.
The tube is made with over 95% post-consumer recycled aluminum, which boasts all the performance characteristics of virgin aluminum, while saving over 50% in CO2 emissions. It is also recyclable at its end-of-life."Aluminum tubes are already infinitely recyclable—closing the loop. This tube is now both recycled and recyclable," Alltub states.
Best Sustainable Tube—Silver Winners
It's a tie—the Best Sustainable Tube, Silver Award Winners, are:- Colgate Total 'Recycle Me!' Toothpaste by Colgate Palmolive
- Sally Beauty Inspired by Nature Permanent Crème Hair Color by Alltub
Colgate Palmolive's innovative "Recycle Me!" tube first launched as a patented design in 2020—and the company offers the technology to other makers of plastic tubes for all types of products.
"We manufacture millions of tubes around the globe every year and recognize our role in leading the charge to create a tube that can be readily recyclable in the current recycling stream," states Colgate-Palmolive. "By encouraging others to use this technology, we can have an even bigger impact—we want to lead in waste reduction and, in particular, making tubes a part of the circular economy."Colgate Palmolive developed the first-ever recyclable tube recognized by the Association of Plastic Recyclers and Plastic Recyclers Europe. "It was important for us to create a plastic tube that would also meet the consumers’ demand for squeezability," the company explains.
The result was the "Recycle Me!" tube—Colgate Palmolive's patented invention that involves a multi-layer sheet for forming a plastic package. "The novel multi-layer sheet consists primarily of high-density polyethylene (HDPE) which allows the resulting plastic package to be readily recyclable in the current HDPE recycling stream," the company states.
The company's "Recycle Me!" campaign is designed to build awareness of recyclable tubes not only among consumers, but also the operators of the Materials Recovery Facilities that sort plastic, re-processors that make resin from recycled plastic, and other recycling stakeholders, the company says.
Sally Beauty Inspired by Nature Permanent Crème Hair Color is in an aluminum tube by Alltub.
The team at Sally Beauty chose to produce the tube using 100% post-industrial recycled aluminum slugs. The cap is produced from 100% post-consumer recycled plastic. It is decorated with a printed image that represents caring for nature, to convey its eco-friendly attributes to consumers.Best Sustainable Tube—Bronze Winners
It's a tie—the Bronze Award winners for Best Sustainable Tube are:- Pop Gel Super Whitening Anti-Cavity Toothpaste by Montebello Packaging
- Avon's Veilment CBD Nourishing Body Cream by Berry Global
Pop Gel's Toothpaste is in an aluminum tube by Montebello Packaging.
"Both the cap and body are aluminum, so the tube is fully plastic-free. It is 100% fully sustainable. We offer it in an array of colors," the supplier states.Avon's CBD Body Cream is in a polyethylene tube by Berry Global—and it's made with 25% post-consumer recycled plastic.
"It can be challenging to make extruded tubes with PCR, but we worked with the team at Avon to develop a formula that was compatible with the extrusion process. The tube offers the same feel, bounce, and functionality of a tube made with virgin resin," states Berry Global.The tube is decorated with a silk-screen and tinted silver cold foil with a gloss coating and a spot matte varnish. The high-end product pairs perfectly with a center-dispense cap, which provides controlled dispensing.
Best Oral Care Tube—Gold Winner
- Colgate Palmolive's Max Fresh Toothpaste took the top prize in the oral care category.
Best Oral Care Tube—Silver & Bronze Winners
- Pop Gel's Brilliant Whitening Anticavity Toothpaste by Montebello Packaging is the Silver Award Winner.
- SmileTwice Charcoal Icy Mint Toothpaste by Twice & Albea Americas is the Bronze Award Winner.
The charcoal toothpaste by Twice Oral Care by Lenny Kravitz, the Bronze winner, is in a tube by Albea Americas. The MDPE tube is recycle-ready. "Since the toothpaste is a charcoal paste, offset yellow had to be applied on top of the already-yellow sleeve to prevent the dark color of the paste to show through the sleeve," the team at Albea states.
Best Pharma Tubes
- Pet Ag's Hairball Solution Gel by Plastube is the Gold winner.
- Vacation Classic Lotion SPF 30 Sunscreen by Albea Americas is the Silver Award winner.
- Boudreaux's Butt Paste Diaper Rash Ointment by Albea Americas is the Bronze Award winner.
Pet Ag, the Gold winner, worked with Plastube to develop an MDPE tube.
The tube is produced using a mix of HDPE and LDPE resin, and it has a flip-top cap. "The printing was done using an Hinterkopf digital printer, which has the ability to print multi-color image quality images directly on fully-formed tubes," Plastube states. "On a sustainable level, this type is printing is efficient as it does not require any printing plates and there is no ink waste."Vacation worked with Albea Americas for its sunscreen tube, the Silver Award winner.
"The 1.5 in diameter, 3.4 oz tube is made using 43% post-consumer recycled resins," Albea states. "The tube's retro-look is inspired by Miami in the 1980’s. The decoration is one-color silkscreen with a sunny flip-top cap," Albea states.Boudreaux worked with Albea Americas to produce the tube for its diaper rash ointment, the Bronze winner.
"This 4 oz. tube has a 1.5 in. diameter, with a flip-top cap. It's a coextruded tube with a brightly colored LDPE barrier. It is decorated with fun grpahics using offset and flexo printing processes," Albea states.Best Process/Component for Tubes
- Avya's Hydroveda Tinted Moisturizer Sunscreen by Kaufman Container is the Gold Award winner.
- Pilatus IML + PE Tubes by Packsys Global is the Silver Award winner.
- The Fuji 1.2 g Flip-Top Cap by Packsys Global is the Bronze Award winner.
Avya Skincare worked with the team at Kaufman on its sunscreen tube, the Gold Award winner.
"A high-end look and product evacuation were the brand's two biggest concerns," Kaufman states. "We recommended a 50 ml 5-layer coextuded airless tube. An airless tube allows for the complete evacuation of their product and it allows consumers to dispense the product at any angle."The closure is a unique custom rose gold metallic pump, collar, and overcap. "The tube was screen-printed to match the rose gold closure," Kaufman states. Avya launched its "Fair/Light" skin tone SKU first for the tinted moisturizer, followed by "Medium." "Both SKUs have performed fantastically, and re-orders have been placed," the supplier says.
Packsys Global's Pilatus IML+ PE tube, the Silver Award winner.
The In-Mold Label Tube is made from PE instead of PP for better 'squeezability' and easier recycling. "The achievement is in the use of PE for the body and label—now possible due to advances in material technology over the past few years," Packsys states. "Since PE is the resin traditionally used for flexible tubes, IML+ tubes are easily manufactured using existing technology for making shoulders and capping tubes," the supplier explains.The IML process allows for rapid design changes. "The underling injection molding process is consistent and repeatable, requiring far less operator training than most existing tube making technologies," adds Packsys.
Packsys Global's Fuji concept is the Bronze winner.
The manufacturing concept allows for the same cap to be used with 35, 40, and 50 mm cosmetic tube diameters. "The orifice is made in the shoulder, not the cap—and makes changing the orifice cost-efficient since it is done in minutes or hours instead of waiting weeks for different size caps to fit different orifices," the supplier states.The Fuji cap has a locking feature. When the cap is pushed back it “clicks’ into a locked position, allowing the product to flow out without the cap interfering with the product flow. "The Fuji cap is HDPE so, when paired with a PE tube body, it is a 'mono-material' tube—and recyclable," the supplier states.
Best Household & Industrial Tube
- Meeco's Red Devil Silicone Sealant by Albea Americas is the Gold Award winner—and only winner in the category.
