Q-Bic
A Revolutionary and Innovative Packaging Design from Norway That Will Significantly Reduce Costs, Emissions, and Food Waste

Did you know that almost 50 percent of traditional food packaging contains just air? The empty space between containers not only inflates logistical costs but adds to unnecessary carbon emissions with every extra truck on the road. While many have tried to address this with new packaging processes and materials, Q-Bic by Smart Packaging Industries AS has taken an approach that reimagines packaging for consumer-packaged goods (CPG).

The innovation begins with a single, pyramid-shaped tray. Six trays are stacked together to form a cube. Six cubes are then combined to create a block and packed together. It's clever design reduces the unused space in packaging to less than 10 percent while allowing more than twice as many units to fit on a pallet, in a truck or in a container compared to traditional packaging methods.

Not only does this design make Q-Bic the most volume-efficient food packaging on the market, but it significantly reduces the amount of packaging materials needed. Less air is shipped, effectively lowering logistical costs, decreasing carbon emissions, packaging material and minimizing food waste—because of the increased strength of the cubes.

“Today, when everyone thinks outside the box, we bring innovation by thinking inside the box,” Bjørn Sloreby, Q-Bic’s general manager of Europe, aptly puts it.

Effective Production through Geometry

Q-Bic’s design is also efficient to manufacture, thanks to its smart use of geometry.

Most CPG packaging today, made as trays, have between 75-85 degrees angles of the side walls, making the production process more time-consuming.

Recognizing these challenges, Stian Valentin Knutsen, the Inventor, Founder and Chairman of Q-Bic, devised a solution that rethinks conventional cube packaging. Incorporating the 45-degree angles into the design allowed for smoother material flow during the moulding process. This significantly reduced the resistance at the corners during the manufacturing process and minimised the time, energy and cost required to produce each unit.

When these 45-degree-angled packages are stacked in cubes, they naturally form stable 90-degree angles, ensuring the structural integrity required for significantly more cost-effective transportation.

The cube’s inherent strength, with forces acting in three directions, significantly reduces damaged goods during transport and handling, marking a substantial advancement in packaging that is as cost-effective as it is environmentally friendly.
Packaging Innovation that Saves Millions

Whether salad greens, dairy products, desserts, cereals or convenience items, Q-Bic’s approach begins with a thorough analysis of the specific challenges of each product category. Using the third-party online tool, On-Pallet Configurator, Q-Bic customizes optimal pallet configurations tailored to a brand’s existing consumer packaging. This tool also provides renderings and simulations to showcase anticipated savings with Q-Bic by increasing the number of consumer packs per pallet/truck/ container, offering clients a clear picture of the benefits.

Q-Bic works these days with one of the biggest global brands in the U.S. to calculate their packaging’s effectiveness. After an analysis it was estimated that for just one of the product categories, Q-Bic can help the client save thousands of truckloads annually, eliminating one out of 3 trucks with Q-Bic. This translates to taking between 6 and 12* trucks off the road every day simply by fitting 1.5x more products into each load. As a result, the brand is now projected to save an estimated $25 to $50* million annually on a single product line. (*Depending on volume produced annually)

The trays can be customised with multiple designs and compartments/chambers, but always to optimise pallet space and always with a 45-degree angle on the sidewalls. The innovative Q-Bic packaging is especially valuable in North America, where trucks typically hold 26 single or 52 stacked pallets. While this limit remains, Q-Bic enables more trays per pallet, increasing load efficiency. A Canadian grower leveraged the 5-ounce Q-Bic tray to pack 1,080 5-ounce trays per pallet, compared to only 680 trays with the standard 5-ounce packaging. Reducing the number of pallets also reduced the transportation cost by an estimated 35 to 50 percent. (37 percent less trucks, less materials and damaged goods, less storage and logistical costs and minor fuel increase due to some weight increase). And for a typical 3-chamber salad, Q-Bic will ensure 2.5x more on the pallet compared to existing packaging.

Sustainability Through and Through

Q-Bic’s innovation extends beyond its shape. The trays are versatile and material-neutral, available in various sizes and chamber configurations. Made from a wide range of recyclable materials, including all PET variants, moulded paper pulp, wrinkle and smooth-wall aluminium foil, moulded wood sheets and other suitable materials, they minimise environmental impact. These materials are often sourced from recycled content, further reducing the demand for virgin resources.

Its cube design also offers robust strength and exceptional space efficiency in freezers, refrigerators and cupboards, making it an excellent choice for grab-and-go multi-pack products. Retailers benefit from faster, more efficient shelf restocking and significantly better utilisation of storage and cold storage.

Bjørn Sloreby, General Manager, Europe

Keeping Blueberries Fresher for Longer

Imagine going beyond cutting costs and environmental impacts to a packaging solution that keeps produce fresher for longer. Q-Bic is doing just that. Ideal for fruits like blueberries, which lose moisture and weight during transport, Q-Bic’s design incorporates air channels in the sidewalls, bottom and lid, ensuring efficient cooling and moisture control to reduce spoilage.

Recently, Q-Bic successfully transported its first batch of blueberries to Norway on refrigerated trucks from Morocco, fitting nearly double the consumer packs into each truck. This not only slashed transportation costs but cut energy consumption for cooling. Q-Bic has recently partnered with the global packaging player the Royal NNZ Group with European HQs in the Netherlands and NA HQs in Atlanta. NNZ has estimated an average of 25 percent reduced material use and emissions for Q-Bic, using lighter materials for the trays inside the cubes due to the strength of the cube. Additionally, Q-Bic normally reduces outer packaging by 30-45 percent.

While traditional packaging fits only 12 clamshells of blueberries per box, Q-Bic’s innovative design allows for twice this number of clamshells in the same space—by packing 36 trays or 6 cubes per box The number of cubes can vary depending on what is required, so boxes with 12 or 24 trays (2 or 4 cubes) are also possible with the same pallet efficiency, but 36 trays in 6 cubes per box will optimise saving of cardboard.
“By offering a quick and easy solution, especially for perishable items like blueberries and leafy greens, we normally enable more than 60 percent reduction in emissions when we add all the benefits from reduced transportation, packaging material, damaged goods and logistics Committed to sustainability, we ensure products are shipped in the most eco-friendly way, providing consumers with peace of mind with reduced packaging and a fresher product,” adds Sloreby.
Novel Products Making an Impact

Market enthusiasm for Q-Bic is surging. Numerous brands are keen to explore its potential, and the company is supporting them with comprehensive sample kits.

This versatility has proven invaluable in reconnecting with past clients and gaining deeper insights into product performance. A study by a major global brand in the US highlighted Q-Bic’s superior performance and gave deeper insights on how to optimise Q-Bic for different categories, products and consumers.

Building on this positive feedback, Q-Bic is expanding its reach in pet food packaging and other categories within CPG, suitable for more sustainable and cost-effective packaging. Using advanced design tools and expertise, it maximises pallet efficiency, paving the way for a future where logistics are efficient, sustainable and aligned with global environmental goals.