Front of pack versus back of pack. guideline daily amounts (GDAs) versus traffic lights. Portion sizes, font sizes and health claims. Just a flavour of the minefield of issues surrounding food and drink labelling. If you're developing a headache over these subjects, you're in good company.

Increasing amounts of variable coding for on-shelf packaging have served to focus attention on types and specifications of coding that are reliable and effective for given products on a given line.

Multi-pack cartons of high-energy liquid dairy products supplied to hospitals by Dutch dairy group Nutricia now carry large print-and-apply labels that wrap. These wrap around the carton corners to allow the cartons to be easily identified within fridges from their front or side.

Lenze Group's Markem Cimpak 300 labelling machine applies labels to pallets using a pneumatic arm. Up to 130 labels an hour can be applied on two sides of a pallet. The machine can also label a third side if the pallet is moved to a second stop position.

Domino will premiere its new G-Series thermal inkjet printer and A-Series plus Duo range of continuous inkjet printers at this month's Packtech 2009 exhibition. The G-Series meets the requirement for improved quality and high speed printing on to a diverse array of substrates. It offers 600 dots per inch resolution and speeds of up to 300m/min. Its ability to quickly switch between water and ethanol-based inks allows printing on porous and non-porous material.

Videojet Technologies has launched two new low-power fibre laser markers that are capable of direct parts marking and unique identification coding on a wide range of metal, plastic and other hard-to-mark materials.

Linx Printing Technologies has installed a Linx 30W scribing laser coder at tea producer Twinings to provide legible code on black cardboard cartons.

Allen Coding Systems will be highlighting a wide range of advanced coding and marking solutions for the food industry at this month's Packtech exhibition, including the newly launched ACF400 compact carton coder. The popular 53LTi low-cost intermittent thermal-transfer printer will also be on shows alongside the Lasersystem K-1010 Plus laser coder and 55ssT combination intermittent and continuous thermal transfer printer.

Marking and coding supplier Markem-Imaje is committed to supplying its customers with methanol-free inks to improve employee safety and environmental protection.

Systems Labelling has announced the launch of its new in-mould labelling facility in Runcorn. The specialist label printer is entering the in-mould labelling market with a production team specifically recruited for the task.