The company says it has taken the initiative to launch the new mechanism, SuperFlex, as a results of NF EN ISO 8317, which was extended in 2003 to stipulate that packaging closures should be impossible for children under 51 months to open, and easy-to-open for seniors in the age 50 - 70 bracket.
The big challenge with meeting these requirements is the fact that the closures must ensure that young children cannot access the packaging, keeping them away from hazardous chemicals or potential toxins, while, at the same time, also making it easy for older users to access.
"To accommodate the two opposite demands i.e. hard to open vs. easy to open the solution is a combination of a flex-system that is only easy to open if you are acquainted with the technique," said Superfos spokesperson Roland Gabriel.
" To make it easy for adults to decode and open the mechanism, the pack is equipped with an explicative logo showing the method."
Superfos, which has manufacturing facilities in both Europe and the US and global turnover of €355m, says that the new closure is the result of years of product development, aimed at working towards the stipulations made by the UN standard.
But the move is also a ground-breaking one, with the company claiming to be the first in Europe to comply with latest NF EN ISO 8317 standard, by fulfilling the requirements for child-proof and senior-friendly mechanisms.
The solution has been implemented off the back of Superfos' progressive product development policy, which has seen a great deal of research and development activity as it aims to increase its compliance with a plethora of new packaging regulations that have been introduced in the sector recently.