Timestrip has announced that its ingenious smart labels are to be featured as an on-pack promotion on jars of Branston Pickle. The promotion is the latest development in the company’s working relationship with Premier Foods, the UK’s leading food producer, which owns the Branston brand.

The Branston promotion will be available from mid- December. The Timestrip labels will be mounted on a collar around the neck of the jar, which consumers can detach and then activate the label when the jar is opened. The Timestrip can then be attached to the lid of the pickle jar, showing consumers at a glance how long the jar has been open.

Premier Foods is known for the quality of its brands and was keen to use Timestrips to communicate with consumers about how to ensure food is used at its freshest and most flavoursome. A Premier Foods spokesperson said: ‘Premier prides itself on innovation and we are pleased to be the first company to trial this exciting technology in the UK retail food sector.’

“Timestrip is delighted to be partnering such a high-profile brand as Branston,” enthuses Reuben Isbitsky, Joint CEO of Timestrip. “We are confident that the Tesco promotion will lead to further opportunities with Premier over the coming months.”

Premier Foods is a major brand owner, with household names including Branston, Hovis, Mr Kipling, Sharwoods, Oxo, Bisto and Loyd Grossman among its portfolio. Its top ten brands alone have retail sales of over £1.1 billion and more than 98% of all UK households has one of its brands in their kitchen cupboards. Branston is the UK’s leading sweet pickle brand, with annual sales of more than 28 million and one in three UK households purchasing a jar every year.

Timestrip® labels automatically monitor elapsed time and can work under a wide variety of conditions, from ambient environments to fridge, freezer and extremely high temperatures. The technology can be integrated into products or packaging, as well as the applied label format and the company is working with clients across a hugely diverse range of industries.