Why the Food & Beverage Industry Depends on Stick Pack Machines
Have you ever wondered how your favorite instant coffee, drink mix, or sugar comes in those neat, slim little pouches? These handy packs are everywhere today, from supermarkets to restaurants and even in your kitchen cabinet. Behind this smart and tidy packaging is an innovative piece of technology called the stick pack machine—a type of Vertical Form Fill Seal (VFFS) system.
Let’s take a closer look at why stick pack machines have become so important for the food and beverage industry and how they help companies deliver quality products to customers.
What Are Stick Pack Machines?
A stick pack machine is a type of packaging machinery designed to make thin, tube-shaped packets, often called stick packs. You’ve probably used them many times—think of a small pouch of instant coffee you pour into a cup, or a single-serve sugar packet you open and sprinkle.
These machines can fill the stick packs with all kinds of products, including:
- Powders: coffee, drink mixes, protein powder
- Granules: sugar, salt, spices
- Liquids: honey, sauces, syrups
- Gels: energy gels, condiments
A stick pack packaging machine comes in two main types:
- Single-lane machines:These make one stick pack at a time. They are great for small or medium production.
- Multi-lane machines: These can produce many stick packs at once—up to 20lanes with speeds ranging from 40 to 1000 stick packs per minute—perfect for large factories making thousands of packs every hour.
Why Are Stick Pack Machines So Popular in Food and Beverage?
The food and beverage industry has many reasons to choose stick pack machines over other kinds of packaging. Let’s look at some of the biggest benefits:
- Perfect for Single-Serve Convenience
Modern customers love single-serve packs. Whether it’s a portion of coffee, a drink mix, or a vitamin powder, people want products that are easy to carry, open, and use on the go. Stick packs meet this need perfectly.
Instead of scooping powder from a big container, consumers just tear open a stick pack, pour it out, and enjoy. This convenience makes stick packs very popular, especially with busy lifestyles.
- Saves Packaging Material and Reduces Waste
Compared to traditional pouches or sachets, stick packs use much less material. Their slim shape means less film is needed to make each pack. This helps manufacturers reduce waste and save costs.
Unified Flex’s stick pack machines have helped companies greatly reduce film waste compared to older, less efficient equipment.
- Compact and Easy to Store
Stick packs are space-efficient at every stage—from manufacturing floors and warehouse storage to retail shelves. For manufacturers, this means more efficient line layout and easier secondary packaging. For distributors and retailers, it means optimized shelf space and better SKU density.
When shipping domestically or internationally, the reduced volume of stick pack formats improves pallet utilization, lowers freight costs, and streamlines supply chain operations.
- Better Hygiene and Longer Shelf Life
A modern stick pack automatic packaging machine uses advanced sealing technology to close each pack securely. This protects the contents from air, moisture, and contamination. It’s especially important for food products that can spoil or lose flavor.
A secure seal helps maintain freshness and extends the product’s shelf life. Customers get a better experience because their food tastes exactly how it should.
- Precise Dosing Every Time
One of the best things about the stick pack automatic packaging machine is its precision. Unified Flex’s servo-driven auger fillers achieve precise dosing accuracy of ±0.1g, ensuring every stick pack delivers the exact amount of product.
This is important for many food and beverage products where the amount matters, like instant soup, drink mixes, or supplements. Customers can trust that every pack has a consistent dose, which builds confidence in the brand.
How Unified Flex Helped a Beverage Co-Packer Boost Output and Cut Waste
A leading U.S.-based beverage co-packer specializing in powdered drink mixes was facing serious packaging challenges across seven SKUs. Their existing equipment caused:
- Inconsistent fill weights in stick packs
- High levels of film waste
- Long changeover times between product runs
To solve these issues, the company turned to Unified Flex and implemented our 10-lane Stick Pack VFFS Machine—a custom-engineered solution designed for high-speed, high-accuracy operations.
The Results:
- More accurate dosing with less product giveaway
- Noticeably lower film waste
- Much quicker changeovers between SKUs
- A clear boost in overall line efficiency
The Outcome: Within a short time, the co-packer saw a notable improvement in productivity and packaging consistency, leading to faster fulfilment, fewer errors, and a stronger bottom line.
How Stick Pack Machines Work
While the machines can look complex, the process is quite simple:
- Film Feeding: A roll of packaging film feeds into the machine.
- Forming: The film is shaped into a tube.
- Sealing the Bottom: The machine seals one end to create the bottom of the stick pack.
- Filling: The product is precisely dosed into the tube.
- Sealing the Top: The top is sealed to enclose the product.
- Cutting:The stick pack is cut to size, and the process repeats.
Multi-lane machines perform these steps across multiple lanes at once, making several stick packs at high speed.
Searching for a High-Performance Stick Pack Machine?
If you’re looking for a reliable and efficient stick pack solution, Unified Flex offers advanced machines that make packaging simple and fast.
Unified Flex stick pack machines are available in 1 to 20 lanes, giving you the flexibility to match your production scale. Depending on your needs, you can achieve an output of 40 to 1000 stick packs per minute, helping you keep up with high demand without compromising on quality.
You can also choose from different seal styles, tear notch options, and stick pack sizes to create packaging that fits your brand perfectly. From coffee and drink mixes to gels and sauces, our machines can package a wide variety of products in a way that’s both cost-effective and attractive to customers.
Want to upgrade your packaging process?
Contact us today to learn more about our stick pack machine solutions and find out how they can boost your production, reduce waste, and delight your customers with convenient, high-quality packaging.
Long Story Short
Stick pack machines have transformed the way food and beverage products are packaged and enjoyed. From instant coffee to drink powders and sauces, these machines make it easy for companies to create high-quality, convenient, and attractive products.
If you’re responsible for improving packaging efficiency in a food or beverage facility, investing in the right VFFS stick pack machine from Unified Flex can greatly improve throughput, cost control, and OEE.
Want to know more about stick pack machines? Get in touch to streamline your production.