The hoped for success for barrier (PET) beer bottles has been more difficult that anticipated & blow moulders have turned towards designs for less demanding applications in juices, carbonated soft drinks (CSD) & hot filled products. Just a few years ago, blow moulders bubbled over with speculation that beer would quickly go the way of the 2-litre soda bottle, creating a bonanza for PET blow moulders. Today, that dream has gone flat. Converting beer from glass to PET is a daunting challenge, requiring a barrier against carbon dioxide egress & oxygen ingress, while retaining clarity & strength. The stumbling block is a unit cost up to 100% higher for barrier PET bottles versus glass. Adoption of PET so far has largely been restricted to low-volume micro-breweries. A shift to barrier PET would require heavy investment in the midst of a cost squeeze.
