Produce packaging: Keeping it green at Kurt Zuhlke & Asso.
Produce packaging: Keeping it green at Kurt Zuhlke & Asso.
For 60 years, the Zuhlke family has been providing packaging for the produce industry.
Kurt Zuhlke Sr., who was originally a chiropractor, started the business in 1955 and was successful for many years along with the aid and support of his wife, Frieda. Kurt Zuhlke Jr., who was working in the real estate industry, joined the family business in the early 1980s when the real estate market went south, and then eventually took over the business when his parents retired He has called produce packaging his career for almost 35 years. His wife Cindy is a valued partner in the company.
Kurt Zuhlke Jr.While Kurt Zuhlke & Associates, headquartered in Bangor, PA, is still the official name of the firm, quite a few years ago it adopted the more descriptive producepackaging.com as its moniker and website identifier.
Though the company also dabbles with packaging for bakery and deli clients, Zuhlke said produce packaging is the core of the business, and in fact, represents the vast majority of sales. Clamshells in various configurations are the top-selling item, but Zuhlke is quick to add that he can supply any packaging a customer needs, including bagging material. The customer list runs the gamut from grower to retailer and everything in between. The company’s president said repackers still represent a good chunk of business on an annual basis.
Several years ago, Kurt Zuhlke Jr. added earth-friendly ideas in all of the company’s designs. Today, he said virtually every clamshell is made of recycled PET (polyethylene terephthalate). Basically all plastic bottles are made from PET, which can be recycled. Clamshells are a great use of that recycled material, which allows this sector of the packaging industry to be one of the more environmentally-friendly suppliers of plastic items in the marketplace.
Zuhlke said PET clamshells are really the only viable option anymore as everyone wants to be as sustainable as possible.
Producepackaging.com handles packaging needs for fresh produce customers throughout the United States, Canada and the Caribbean. Zuhlke said he has sold product to Europe and Asia but his core business is in North America.