Carton

A carton is a box or container usually made of liquid packaging board (LPB), paperboard and sometimes of corrugated fiberboard. Many types of cartons are used in packaging. Sometimes a carton is also called a box.

## Contents

* 1 Types of cartons
* 1.1 Folding cartons
* 1.2 Egg carton
* 1.3 Aseptic carton
* 1.4 Perga carton
* 1.5 Gable top
* 1.6 Waxed paperboard beverage carton (historical)
* 2 Packaging history
* 2.1 Folded carton
* 2.2 Milk carton
* 3 Shape
* 4 Materials
* 5 Artistic design and other imagery
* 6 Carton-pierre
* 7 Beverages & snacks found in cartons
* 8 See also
* 9 Notes
* 10 References
* 11 External links

## Types of cartons

### Folding cartons

See also: Engineering:Folding carton

Typical blank for folding carton

A carton is a type of packaging typically made from paperboard that is suitable for food, pharmaceuticals, hardware, and many other types of products.[1] Folding cartons are usually combined into a tube at the manufacturer and shipped flat (knocked down) to the packager. Tray styles have a solid bottom and are often shipped as flat blanks and assembled by the packager. Some also are self-erecting. High-speed equipment is available to set up, load, and close the cartons.

### Egg carton

Molded pulp egg cartons, Japan

Egg cartons or trays are designed to protect whole eggs while in transit. Traditionally, these have been made of molded pulp. This uses recycled newsprint which is molded into a shape which protects the eggs. More recently, egg cartons have also been made from expanded polystyrene and PET.

### Aseptic carton

Cartons for liquids can be fabricated from laminates of liquid packaging board (LPB), foil, and polyethylene. Most are based on either Tetra Pak or SIG Combibloc systems. One option is to have the printed laminate supplied on a roll. The carton is cut, scored, and formed at the packager. A second option is to have the pre-assembled tubes delivered to the packaging plant for completion and filling. These are suited for aseptic processing and are used for milk, soup, juice, etc. Paperboard-based cartons are lighter compared to a similarly sized steel can, but are harder to recycle. Some open-loop recycling operations pelletize or flatten ground-up cartons for use in building materials; closed-loop recycling is possible by separating the layers before processing, though some recyclers only recycle the cardboard fibers.[2]

### Perga carton

Perga cartons entered production in 1932 as a leak-proof can after they were produced locally during World War 1. Jagenberg Werke AG, in Düsseldorf, Germany, patented the design. The carton had a ribbed texture and paper sleeves covered in paraffin material, which provided a seamed structure from base to lid. Most cartons had a capacity of 200 mL. Development of the carton slowed during World War II, but the design would see a revival within European markets in the 1960s.

### Gable top

Gable top carton of cream

Gable top cartons are often used for liquid products such as milk, juice, etc. These use polyethylene-coated paperboard[3] or other liquid packaging board (LPB) and sometimes a foil laminate. Most are opened by pushing open the gables at the top back and pulling the top (spout) out. Some have fitments to assist in opening and eating the contents.[4][5][6][7]

### Waxed paperboard beverage carton (historical)

Cuboid waxed paperboard beverage, a formed waxed paperboard plug crimped and sealed, preceded gabled polyethylene-coated paperboard cartons.[8] Waxed paper straws were used to drink.[9] Borden distributed milk in this way.[10][11][12][13][14][15][16][17][18][19][20][excessive citations]

## Packaging history

### Folded carton

The Paper Container trade journal dates the first commercial cardboard box production to the firm M. Treverton & Son, of England, in 1817.[21][22] At around the same time card cartons appeared in Germany, to ship and house board games, an early example being The Game of Besieging.[23] In 1879, Robert Gair, in Brooklyn, New York, operated a factory that die-ruled, cut, and scored paperboard into a single impression of a folded carton. Gair had the idea to combine folding and cutting into a single operation, after a creasing rule on a paper seed bag printing machine malfunctioned and cut through a bag.[21]

By 1896, the National Biscuit Company was the first to use cartons to package crackers.[24]

### Milk carton

In 1908, Dr. Winslow, of Seattle, Washington, described paper milk containers that were commercially sold in San Francisco and Los Angeles as early as 1906.[8][25] The inventor of this carton was G.W. Maxwell.[8][5] Later, in 1915 John Van Wormer of Toledo, Ohio, received the a patent for the gable-topped, wax-coated, "paper bottle," a folded blank box for holding milk, calling it the "Pure-Pak."[26] The milk carton could be folded, glued, filled with milk, and sealed at a dairy farm.[27] In 1953, Seok-kyun Shin introduced the gable-topped milk carton to Korea.[28] In the 1960s, Mario Lepore, a Detroit engineer designed a machine to fold and seal a gable top paper carton. In 1957 paper milk carton company Kieckhefer Container Co. merged with the Weyerhauser Timber Company of Tacoma, Washington.[citation needed]

## Shape

Tetrahedral carton of milk

Although quite often shaped like a cuboid, it is not uncommon to find cartons lacking right angles and straight edges, as in squrounds used for ice cream.

Tetrahedrons and other shapes are available. Cartons with a hexagonal or octagonal cross sections are sometimes used for specialty items.

## Materials

Cartons can be made from many materials: paperboard, duplex, white kraft, recycled and many more various plastics, or a composite. Some are "food grade" for direct contact with foods. Many cartons are made out of a single piece of paperboard. Depending on the need, this paperboard can be waxed or coated with polyethylene to form a moisture barrier. This may serve to contain a liquid product or keep a powder dry.

## Artistic design and other imagery

In art history, the carton (pronounced the French way) was a drawing on heavy pasteboard or paperboard, used as life-size design for the manufacture in an atelier of a valuable tapestry, such as a gobelin. During the weaving it hung behind the tapestry in the making, a time-consuming process thus in a creative sense simplified to 'mechanical' painting-by-numbers.

As these were extremely valuable, often commanded by the very richest art-buyers, including princes who hung them in their palaces and even took them on their travels as prestigious displays of wealth, often with a visual message, especially the world-famous Flemish ateliers were deemed worthy to have cartons made by some of the greatest graphic artists of the time, including such celebrated painters as Rubens.

In the 1980s, milk cartons in the United States often printed photos of missing children with the hope that someone would recognize the photograph and provide information to police.

Many milk cartons also included advertisements and sponsors. These images and sponsors ranged from DVDs, Cereal, Cartoons, Frozen Dinners, and Albums.[29]

## Carton-pierre

Carton-pierre was a material used for the making of raised ornaments for wall and ceiling decoration. It is composed of the pulp of paper mixed with whiting (ground calcium carbonate) and glue, this being forced into plaster moulds backed with paper, and then removed to a drying room to harden. It is much stronger and lighter than common plaster-of-Paris ornaments, and is not so liable to chip or break if struck with anything.

## Beverages & snacks found in cartons

There is a plethora of beverages and snacks found within carton-packaging. This includes milk, juices (in juice boxes), egg whites, coffee, protein shakes, water, and even snacks like Goldfish and Whoppers.[30]

## See also

* Corrugated box
* Juice box
* Tetra Pak
* Elopak

## Notes

1. ↑ "Guide to Carton Boxes and Packaging". 10 November 2020. https://refinepackaging.com/blog/carton-boxes/.
2. ↑ Jacewicz, Natalie (9 March 2018). "In The Recycling World, Why Are Some Cartons Such A Problem?". NPR. https://www.npr.org/sections/thesalt/2018/03/09/591568093/in-the-recycling-world-why-are-some-cartons-such-a-problem.
3. ↑ "Carton Recycling". https://www.recyclecartons.ca/carton-recycling/.
4. ↑ "A consumer favourite for more than a century". https://www.elopak.com/usa/about/history/.
5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 "Folded Paper Milk Carton – Ohio History Central". https://ohiohistorycentral.org/w/Folded_Paper_Milk_Carton.
6. ↑ Leahy, Cory (2016-01-08). "Food Movers: Paper or Plastic?". https://foodandcity.org/food-mover-paper-plastic/.
7. ↑ "Surprisingly History Facts of Paper Bottle and FFS Machine | John Van Wormer". 2021-02-26. https://packagingguruji.com/history-facts-paper-bottle/.
8. ↑ 8.0 8.1 8.2 "The Paper Beverage Carton: Past and Future". July 2002. https://www.ift.org/news-and-publications/food-technology-magazine/issues/2002/july/features/the-paper-beverage-carton-past-and-future. "The first records of paper being used to carry liquids on a commercial scale are found in reports, dated 1908, of a Dr. Winslow of Seattle. He remarked on paper milk containers which were invented and sold in San Francisco and Los Angeles by a G.W. Maxwell as early as 1906."
9. ↑ "1888 Heavy-Duty Paper Drinking Straws (Pack of 24)". https://shop.driehausmuseum.org/products/1888-heavy-duty-paper-drinking-straws-pack-of-24.
10. ↑ "Wax Paper Milk Carton". 2021-08-08. https://encrypted-tbn0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcS4qT9RTec7SQ1MzCsiV347A7rLwYEcXwbuBWufsCAv1u1HVlJOpNiSFfI3U0Y&s=.
11. ↑ "Wax Paper Milk Carton". 2021-08-08. https://i.pinimg.com/originals/fd/b1/08/fdb108f2d23754b6833e3e5b99445109.jpg.
12. ↑ "Skookum Milk Waxed Carton". 2021-08-08. https://www.icollect247.com/item/139383/Skookum--Milk--Waxed-Carton.
13. ↑ "Antiques, Art, Vintage". 2021-08-08. https://www.goantiques.com/swiss-farm-milk-1507072.
14. ↑ "2 Vintage Waxed Paper 1qt Milk Cartons Rocky Forest Dairy, Laceyville, Pennsylvania". 2021-08-08. https://www.ebay.com/itm/174849511116.
15. ↑ "Knudsen 1950's Dairy Half Pint Wax Paper Milk Carton". 2021-08-08. https://www.ebay.com/itm/304018218967.
16. ↑ "Wax Paper Milk Carton". 2021-08-08. https://i.ebayimg.com/images/g/nFoAAOSwsthghJG3/s-l1600.jpg.
17. ↑ "Vintage Kitchen Décor Knudsen 1950's Dairy Half Pint Wax Paper Milk Carton". Archived from the original. Error: If you specify `|archiveurl=`, you must also specify `|archivedate=`. https://web.archive.org/web/20210808075032/https://www.ebay.com/itm/304018218967.
18. ↑ "Wax Paper Milk Carton". 2021-08-08. https://i.ebayimg.com/images/g/B2oAAOSwdwhghJHE/s-l1600.jpg.
19. ↑ "Wax Paper Milk Carton". 2021-08-08. https://i.ebayimg.com/images/g/k5gAAOSw8EpghJHG/s-l1600.jpg.
20. ↑ "2 Vintage Waxed Paper 1qt Milk Cartons RockyForest Dairy Laceyville Pennsylvania". Archived from the original. Error: If you specify `|archiveurl=`, you must also specify `|archivedate=`. https://web.archive.org/web/20210808074531/https://www.ebay.com/itm/174849511116.
21. ↑ 21.0 21.1 "A History of Packaging". https://ohioline.osu.edu/factsheet/cdfs-133.
22. ↑ Davis, Alec (1968) (in en). Package and Print: The Development of Container and Label Design. C. N. Potter. p. 62. https://books.google.com/books?id=xvAmAQAAMAAJ.
23. ↑ The Game of Besieging, 1810–1820, https://collections.vam.ac.uk/item/O25924/the-game-of-besieging-board-game-unknown/, retrieved 2026-06-04
24. ↑ The packaging designer's book of patterns. Bilimsel Eserler. 11 July 2000. ISBN 9780471385042. https://books.google.com/books?id=RLhcx5ZZHUkC&q=Robert+Gairfolding+carton&pg=PA16. Retrieved 10 August 2021.
25. ↑ Sullivan, Karla Sullivan (26 December 2019). "The best chocolate drinks" (in en). Lifetime Chicago. https://karlasullivandotcom.wordpress.com/2019/12/26/the-best-chocolate-drinks/. "(Photo) Bordens Dutch Chocolate"
26. ↑ "History". https://www.elopak.com/usa/about/history/. "1915 Patent for the gable-topped Pure-Pak granted 1936 First machines installed in US market"
27. ↑ Food packaging: principles and practice. CRC Press. 22 September 2005. ISBN 9780849337758. https://books.google.com/books?id=NFRR6GayR74C&q=John+Van+Wormer+inventor+of+milk+carton&pg=PA117. Retrieved 16 October 2020.
28. ↑ Hence, the Edison of Korea, Doctor Shin Seok-kyun, suggested creating packages that would store milk for a prolonged time .
29. ↑ Gray, Philip (2009-08-27). "Using Milk-Carton Ads to Build Strong Brands" (in en-US). The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. https://www.nytimes.com/2009/08/27/business/media/27adco.html.
30. ↑ admin (2016-12-07). "Food and Beverages You Didn't Know Come in Cartons" (in en-US). https://www.recyclecartons.com/consumer/food-and-beverages-you-didnt-know-come-in-cartons/.

## References

* Yam, K.L., "Encyclopedia of Packaging Technology", John Wiley & Sons, 2009, ISBN 978-0-470-08704-6
* "Gable Top Cartons | Gable Top Packaging" (in en-US). https://www.cartonservice.com/products/gable-top-cartons/.
* "Thùng carton" (in vi-VN). https://recolor.vn/thung-carton/.
* The Paper Beverage Carton: Past and Future. 1 July 2002, https://www.ift.org/news-and-publications/food-technology-magazine/issues/2002/july/features/the-paper-beverage-carton-past-and-future.Kirwan, M. J. (2011-03-17), "Paper and Paperboard Packaging", Food and Beverage Packaging Technology, Oxford, UK: Wiley-Blackwell, pp. 213–250, doi:10.1002/9781444392180.ch8, ISBN 9781444392180, http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/9781444392180.ch8, retrieved 2023-04-16
* Chertoff, Emily (2012-08-01). "The Surprising History of the Milk Carton" (in en). https://www.theatlantic.com/national/archive/2012/08/the-surprising-history-of-the-milk-carton/260587/.
* admin (2016-12-07). "Food and Beverages You Didn't Know Come in Cartons" (in en-US). https://www.recyclecartons.com/consumer/food-and-beverages-you-didnt-know-come-in-cartons/.
* Gray, Philip (2009-08-27). "Using Milk-Carton Ads to Build Strong Brands" (in en-US). The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. https://www.nytimes.com/2009/08/27/business/media/27adco.html.

## External links

* How cartons are made, How Paper Cartons Are Made

* v
* t
* e

Packaging

General topics|

* Active packaging
* Child-resistant packaging
* Contract packager
* Modified atmosphere/modified humidity packaging
* Package pilferage
* Package testing
* Packaging engineering
* Resealable packaging
* Reusable packaging
* Reuse of bottles
* Shelf life
* Shelf-ready packaging
* Shelf-stable
* Sustainable packaging
* Tamper-evident
* Tamper resistance
* Wrap rage

Product packages|

* Alternative wine closure
* Beer bottle
* Box wine
* Case-ready meat
* Coffee bag
* Cosmetic packaging
* Currency packaging
* Disposable food packaging
* Drink can
* Egg carton
* Evidence packaging
* Flour sack
* Foam food container
* Food packaging
* Glass milk bottle
* Growler
* Juicebox
* Luxury packaging
* Milk bag
* Optical disc packaging
* Popcorn bag
* Pharmaceutical packaging
* Plastic milk container
* Self-heating food packaging
* Screw cap (wine)
* Single-serve coffee container
* Water bottle
* Wine bottle

Containers|

* Aerosol spray
* Aluminium bottle
* Aluminum can
* Ampoule
* Antistatic bag
* Bag-in-box
* Bag
* Barrel
* Biodegradable bag
* Blister pack
* Boil-in-bag
* Bottle
* Box
* Bulk box
* Cage
* Case
* Carboy
* Carton
* Chub
* Clamshell
* Corrugated box design
* Crate
* Disposable cup
* Drum
* Endcap
* Envelope
* Flexible intermediate bulk container
* Folding carton
* Glass bottle
* Gunny sack
* Inhaler
* Insulated shipping container
* Intermediate bulk container
* Jar
* Jerrycan
* Jug
* Keg
* Mesh bag
* Multi-pack
* Oyster pail
* Packet (container)
* Padded envelope
* Pail
* Paper bag
* Paper sack
* Plastic bag
* Plastic bottle
* Retort pouch
* Sachet
* Security bag
* Self-heating can
* Shipping container
* Skin pack
* Spray bottle
* Stand-up pouch
* Steel and tin cans
* Tetra Brik
* Thermal bag
* Tub (container)
* Tube
* Unit load
* Vial
* Wooden box

Materials and
components|

* Adhesive
* Aluminium foil
* Bail handle
* Bioplastic
* Biodegradable plastic
* BoPET
* Bubble wrap
* Bung
* Cellophane
* Closure
* Coated paper
* Coating
* Coextrusion
* Corrugated fiberboard
* Corrugated plastic
* Cushioning
* Desiccant
* Double seam
* Foam peanut
* Gel pack
* Glass
* Hot-melt adhesive
* Kraft paper
* Label
* Lid
* Linear low-density polyethylene
* Liquid packaging board
* Low-density polyethylene
* Metallised film
* Modified atmosphere
* Molded pulp
* Nonwoven fabric
* Overwrap
* Oxygen scavenger
* Package handle
* Packaging gas
* Pallet
* Paper
* Paper pallet
* Paperboard
* Plastic film
* Plastic pallet
* Plastic wrap
* Polyester
* Polyethylene
* Polypropylene
* Pressure-sensitive tape
* Pump dispenser
* Screw cap
* Screw cap (wine)
* Security printing
* Security tape
* Shock detector
* Shock and vibration data logger
* Shrink wrap
* Slip sheet
* Staple (fastener)
* Strapping
* Stretch wrap
* Susceptor
* Tamper-evident band
* Tear tape
* Temperature data logger
* Time temperature indicator
* Tinplate
* Velostat

Processes|

* Aseptic processing
* Authentication
* Automatic identification and data capture
* Blow fill seal
* Blow molding
* Calendering
* Canning
* Coating
* Containerization
* Corona treatment
* Curtain coating
* Die cutting
* Die forming (plastics)
* Electronic article surveillance
* Extrusion
* Extrusion coating
* Flame treatment
* Glass production
* Graphic design
* HACCP
* Hermetic seal
* Induction sealing
* Injection moulding
* Lamination
* Laser cutting
* Molding
* Package tracking
* Papermaking
* Plastic welding
* Plastics extrusion
* Printing
* Quality assurance
* Radio-frequency identification
* Roll slitting
* Shearing (manufacturing)
* Thermoforming
* Track and trace
* Vacuum forming
* Ultrasonic welding
* Vacuum packaging
* Verification and validation

Machinery|

* Barcode printer
* Barcode reader
* Bottling line
* Calender
* Can seamer
* Cartoning machine
* Case sealer
* Check weigher
* Conveyor system
* Extended core stretch wrapper
* Filler
* Heat gun
* Heat sealer
* Industrial robot
* Injection molding machine
* Label printer applicator
* Lineshaft roller conveyor
* Logistics automation
* Material-handling equipment
* Mechanical brake stretch wrapper
* Multihead weigher
* Orbital stretch wrapper
* Packaging machinery
* Palletizer
* Rotary wheel blow molding systems
* Shrink tunnel
* Staple gun
* Tape dispenser
* Turntable stretch wrapper
* Vertical form fill sealing machine

Environment,
post-use|

* Biodegradation
* Environmental engineering
* Glass recycling
* Industrial ecology
* Life-cycle assessment
* Litter
* Packaging waste
* Paper recycling
* Plastic recycling
* Recycling
* Reusable packaging
* Reverse logistics
* Source reduction
* Sustainable packaging
* Waste management

Category: Packaging

0.00

(0 votes)

Original source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carton. Read more

|

Retrieved from "https://handwiki.org/wiki/index.php?title=Engineering:Carton&oldid=4557397"
*[v]: View this template
*[t]: Discuss this template
*[e]: Edit this template