• Hall of Fame: Matt Ormond, Amcor
    Hall of Fame: Matt Ormond, Amcor
  • Flexo Best in Show: James Crichton and Zoe Farrell from Amcor
    Flexo Best in Show: James Crichton and Zoe Farrell from Amcor
  • Best of Show Analogue Labels, Digital Labels and Innovation: MCC team (l-r) Ben Testa, Dale Dennehy, Chris Rutledge and Steve Davies
    Best of Show Analogue Labels, Digital Labels and Innovation: MCC team (l-r) Ben Testa, Dale Dennehy, Chris Rutledge and Steve Davies
  • Apprentice of Year: Paul Plunkett, Pakaflex
    Apprentice of Year: Paul Plunkett, Pakaflex
  • The best flexible packaging and label printers: FLPMA Award winners at the event.
    The best flexible packaging and label printers: FLPMA Award winners at the event.
  • Abbatastic: FPLMA awards evening opens
    Abbatastic: FPLMA awards evening opens
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Amcor and MCC were the two big winners at the annual Flexo Packaging and Label Manufacturing Association awards, each walking away with a hatful of gongs after dominating their categories.

Between them they scooped all the Best in Show awards, with MCC also picking up the Innovation award, at the industry’s night of nights, held in the glamorous Crown Palladium on Melbourne’s Southbank.

Amcor won Flexo Best in Show for its Cadbury's Dairy Milk job, while MCC won Labels Analogue Best in Show for its Bundaberg Campfire Rum label, printed at its Queensland facility, and took home Labels Digital Best in Show for its Primal Shiraz wine label, printed in Melbourne.

Both companies won the majority of awards in flexo and labels, on a night which saw 300 industry professionals from 85 companies welcomed to the awards by FPLMA secretary and MC for the night Tony Dalleore.

Rollspack, James Print and Ultra Labels were among the other winners on the night.

Paul Plunkett from Pakaflex won apprentice of the year from a field of seven outstanding candidates, and was presented with his prize by last year’s winner Matilda Milligan from Fildes.

Damien Williams from Pemara took home the Merit award, while Matt Ormond from Amcor was awarded Hall of Fame, and gave an impassioned speech on the need for the industry to support apprentices.

The FPLMA awards event has long been recognised as the best in the industry, and Friday did not disappoint, with an Abba dance routine to open the night, a spectacular Latino Salsa dancing exhibition, followed by a hugely popular Salsa, Bachata and Reggaeton class on the dancefloor, and topped off with a terrific covers band that saw the industry dance the night away. The food served up by Crown could only be described as excellent.

Food & Drink Business

Scientists from Hunan Agricultural University in China have developed a new strain of rice that emits up to 70 per cent less methane, aiming to tackle the 12 per cent of global methane emissions resulting from rice cultivation.

Food Standards Australia New Zealand has undertaken a second round of public consultation on its review of the addition of caffeine to food, closing 15 April, which will specifically target sports foods and consider the risk posed to sensitive sub-populations.

Dairy co-operative, Fonterra, is working towards its sustainability targets through new funding from the company itself, and through separate agreements with Mars and Nestlé, aiming to reduce emissions from its farmers.