The Fresh Factory Installs Innovative Shrink-Sleeve Technology to Expand Capabilities

CAROL STREAM, IL / ACCESSWIRE / December 16, 2021 / The Fresh Factory B.C. Ltd. (CSE:FRSH) ("The Fresh Factory" or the "Company"), a mission-driven platform for plant-based and clean-label food and beverage brands, is excited to announce a partnership with Inovar Packaging and the installation of a new high-speed shrink-sleeve labeling machine, enabling the Company to expand its capabilities and growing list of services. In addition, the Company has signed a contract with an anchor customer for the line estimated at 1M bottles per year.

"Procuring this technology allows The Fresh Factory to lead as innovators for our brand portfolio," said Bill Besenhofer, CEO and co-founder of The Fresh Factory. "This cutting-edge labeling technology and top-of-the-line marketing capabilities will help us better meet the needs of the quickly growing number of fresh-food companies."

HOWFOND 400H Steam Tunnel Technology

With the addition of the HOWFOND 400H Steam Tunnel technology, The Fresh Factory is now able to shrink-sleeve round, flat, square, and irregularly shaped containers at speeds of up to 400 bottles per minute, which will better serve its clients' needs for expeditious packaging. The shrink-sleeve is capable of sleeving containers ranging in height from 40 millimeters up to 200 millimeters and with a maximum lay-flat size of 200 millimeters and can accommodate polyethylene terephthalate glycol (PETG), polyvinyl chloride (PVC), and oriented polystyrene (OPS) shrink materials. This state-of-the-art equipment can shrink the sleeve of a product over and around the cap to create a secure tamper-evident seal. The shrink-sleeve applicator will be operational in The Fresh Factory's facility in Carol Stream, Illinois, which is known for its adaptable manufacturing and expertise in clean-label, plant-based formulation and the ability to quickly launch on-trend products with the flexibility for small run sizes. An anchor customer of The Fresh Factory will be the first to use the shrink-sleeve in Q1 2022.

Along with the addition of this technology comes a partnership with Inovar Packaging and their dedicated team of professionals. Inovar Packaging can produce and support everything from the simplest of tamper-evident shrink bands to the most complex multi-color sleeves, including foils, metallic inks, variable data, and textured varnishes.

"This new shrink-sleeve capability will allow our customers to enhance their brand presence on shelf, with a 360-degree decoration that offers up to 150% more real estate for marketing copy and a way to stand out on the shelf," said Mike Weglarz, SVP Innovation & Commercialization at The Fresh Factory. "The Fresh Factory will now be able to decorate hot-fill-compatible PET containers, which will be a large area of growth for us over the next few years."

To learn more about the shrink-sleeve, please contact Mike Weglarz, SVP Innovation & Commercialization, at mike@thefreshfactory.co.

About The Fresh Factory B.C. Ltd.

The Fresh Factory is a vertically integrated company focused on accelerating the growth of the plant-based, clean-label food and beverage brands of tomorrow. The Fresh Factory owns or partners with emerging brands in the plant-based space to develop, manufacture, and sell products made from fresh produce and recognizable ingredients. It operates from its centrally located manufacturing facility near Chicago, serving customers across the US. As a B Corporation, The Fresh Factory is ESG-focused, driven to make a lighter, greener impact on the environment and a stronger, positive impact on local communities and the food system as a whole. Learn more about The Fresh Factory at www.thefreshfactory.co and find The Fresh Factory on social media at Instagram, Twitter and LinkedIn.

To receive news and updates about The Fresh Factory, visit our website www.thefreshfactory.co.

Contacts

Bill Besenhofer
CEO and Co-Founder
1-877-495-1638
info@thefreshfactory.co

Alyssa Barry
Media and Investor Relations
1-877-495-1638
healthyinvestors@thefreshfactory.co

This news release contains "forward-looking statements" or "forward-looking information" (collectively referred to hereafter as "forward-looking statements") within the meaning of applicable Canadian securities legislation. All statements that address activities, events, or developments that Company expects or anticipates will, or may, occur in the future, including statements about Company's ability to execute on its goals, the timing pertaining to these goals and receipt of applicable consents and approvals, and Company's business prospects, future trends, plans and strategies. In some cases, forward looking statements are preceded by, followed by, or include words such as "may", "will," "would", "could", "should", "believes", "estimates", "projects", "potential", "expects", "plans", "intends", "proposes", "anticipates", "targeted", "continues", "forecasts", "designed", "goal", "anticipate" or the negative of those words or other similar or comparable words. Although the management of the Company believes that the assumptions made and the expectations represented by such statements are reasonable, there can be no assurance that a forward-looking statement herein will prove to be accurate. Forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties, and other factors which may cause the actual results, performance, or achievements of Company to be materially different from any future results, performance, or achievements expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. Although management of the Company has attempted to identify important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those contained in forward-looking information, there may be other factors that cause results not to be as anticipated, estimated, or intended. Risks and uncertainties applicable to the Company, as well as trends identified by the Company affecting its industry can be found in the Prospectus and the Company's continuous disclosure record available on SEDAR at www.sedar.com. Such cautionary statements qualify all forward-looking statements made in this news release. The Company undertakes no obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events, or otherwise, except as required by applicable law.

SOURCE: The Fresh Factory B.C. Ltd.