Duravant acquires Ohlson Packaging

03-Jan-2018 - Last updated on 03-Jan-2018 at 15:22 GMT

Ohlson makes packaging for gummies. Picture: Ohlson youtube.

Duravant has acquired Ohlson Packaging, a weighing, counting and filling machine manufacturer, whose clients include Frito-Lay, Hershey’s, Kraft Foods, Tyson Foods and Maple Leaf Foods.

With the acquisition, Duravant said it will continue to serve its customers in frozen foods, hardware, and snacks, and will expand its product portfolio and service capabilities.

MAP systems

Amanda Peters, who recently became marketing communications manager, at Duravant, told BakeryandSnacks the company focuses on dynamic growth.

"Ohlson will be a stand-alone operating company in Duravant’s Packaging Segment and the benefits of our partnership will drive value to our customers through access to more products and services through cross-selling, SupportPro, and more," she said.

"Additional operational excellence initiatives will drive greater value for customers as well."

According to Mike Kachmer, CEO, Duravant, Ohlson Packaging offers a complete line including combination and linear weighers, vertical baggers, pouch machines, bucket elevators, and rotary tables for packaging products into bags, bottles, boxes, premade pouches, cups, containers, trays and MAP systems, specializing in the food industry.

“We appreciate the opportunity to partner with John Ohlson and the entire Ohlson Packaging team,” he said.

“They have done an outstanding job of growing their business in a profitable way while demonstrating values that are aligned with those at Duravant.”

Ohlson Packaging based in Taunton, Massachusetts, made headlines last year when it designed and manufactured a full range of automatic and semi-automatic net weighing and counting machines for the cannabis industry.

Various product capabilities

It has three cannabis-specific systems: the Budtender system, a semi-automatic system for weighing and filling cannabis-specific containers, which can reach 15-20 fills per minute; the Producer system, a similar semi-automatic system that is capable of 30-40 fills per minute; and the Processor system, which maintains the accuracy of other builds but is capable of moving at twice the speed when paired with one of Ohlson’s fully automatic bagging systems.

The systems work alongside any of the packaging options typically found in the cannabis industry, including jars, medicine bottles, cups, and re-sealable plastic bags; the systems also work with any of the industry’s popular products, including cannabis flower, wax, shake, edibles, oils, and pre-rolls.

Nancy Weber, sales representative, Ohlson Packaging, said at the time; after being contacted by a Colorado business owner it immersed itself in the industry and learned it could re-engineer its multi-head scales to expand its product capability.