SMI: Latteria Sociale Valtellina chooses PET for milk packaging

2026-08-04 1:44 min Milk, Bottle development and design

SMI S.p.A.San Giovanni Bianco BG, Italy

With deep roots in the past and a constant eye on the future, Latteria Sociale Valtellina stands out for its excellent dairy products. The company respects and enhances ancient traditions thanks to ongoing investments in new technologies, such as the SMI EBS 4 K ERGON rotary stretch-blow moulder, used to produce the 0.5 L and 1 L PET bottles for milk and the 0.48 L PET bottles for kefir.

By choosing the right packaging, Latteria Sociale Valtellina makes a difference in preserving the ecosystem. The company took the first major step toward environmental sustainability by choosing PET bottles for bottling the over 1,200 hundredweights of milk collected daily from the farms of the cooperative members and bottled at the Postalesio facility (Sondrio). PET is in fact a safe, durable, and shatterproof material, ensuring the product's high quality.

The cooperative has also identified RPET50 (PET with 50% recycled material) as the best solution, anticipating the requirements of the new European directives, which require the use of containers with at least 30% recycled material by 2030.

Focus on Latteria Sociale Valtellina

The Latteria Sociale Valtellina was founded in 1979 with its headquarters in Delebio, in Lower Valtellina, in the province of Sondrio, a charming area with a strong dairy vocation.

The company prioritizes innovation as a driving force for development and a key element in producing excellent dairy products.

SMI solutions for Latteria Sociale Valtellina

Latteria Sociale Valtellina firmly believes in the importance of working closely with its suppliers, establishing relationships based on loyalty and transparency. An example of this is the recent collaboration with SMI for the supply of an EBS 4 K ERGON stretch-blow moulding system, which has enabled the production of 0.5L and 1L PET bottles, used for bottling milk, and the 0.48L PET bottles used for bottling kefir, to be brought in-house at the Postalesio-based company.

Benefits for the environment and costs reduction

The EBS 4 K ERGON stretch-blow moulding system allows Latteria Sociale Valtellina to insource the PET bottle production process and save on the weekly transport previously required for the bottle procurement, with a clear positive environmental impact.

Purchasing preforms for the in-house production of PET bottles also allows Latteria Sociale Valtellina to reduce the disposable outer packaging required to transport empty bottles purchased externally; instead, the preforms are handled in special reusable metal cages.

Benefits for energy efficiency

The preform heating section, integrated into a single module with the stretch-blow moulding section, is characterized by the horizontal development of the preform conveyor and an optimized ventilation and aeration system. The IR lamp groups responsible for heating the preforms are equipped with a system of heat-reflecting panels made of highly energy-efficient composite material, positioned both in front and behind the lamps, to ensure high heat reflection and more uniform distribution across the entire surface of the preform.

www.smigroup.it www.latteriavaltellina.it

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