The Mexican Containers and Packaging Association awards 49

San Pedro Garza García, Nuevo León, Mexico, July 02, 2012.- Vitro received the awards annually granted by the Mexican Containers and Packaging Association (AMEE) in the 2012 edition of “Envase y Embalaje Estelar 2012” contest.This year, 49 products were awarded and 14 received a diploma. The Company was also acknowledged for the third year in a row due to its sustainability efforts, since this year 6 containers were distinguished in the “Sustainable Packaging” category.

During the awards ceremony held yesterday as part of the “Expo Pack” in Banamex Convention Center in Mexico City, Roberto Romero Sámano, Marketing Vice President for Vitro’s Glass Containers business unit said: “We are proud that Vitro’s efforts to present innovative designs and to produce containers made with sustainability criteria is reflected in efficient products. Not only they meet the needs of each of our clients, but in most cases they successfully respond to the criteria of weight reduction of the container, resulting in an optimization of energy usage and benefiting the consumers and society in general”.

In addition, Adrián Sada Cueva, Glass Containers President stated: “Achieving the recognition for 49 of our containers, as well as having received the distinction of “Sustainable Packaging” in 6 of our products, motivate us to keep doing a better job maintaining the focus on the sustainability criteria that distinguishes our Company and that is reflected in a responsible corporate management, a sound human attitude, and a viable environment”.

Of the 49 awards received by Vitro, 9 were for containers in the wine and liquor industry, 13 for carbonated beverages containers, 2 for beer containers, 3 in the food industry and 22 in the cosmetic segment.

The representatives of the winning companies, whose containers were developed by Vitro, concurred upon the importance of having an important strategic partner, since a key element of success in the design of their containers has been the Company´s close collaboration with the marketing departments of their companies in order to create new business opportunities and to develop innovative and creative products, enhancing the quality of their contents.

Vitro has developed value added solutions for product engineering such as structural analysis, which determines the product´s life cycle and its performance based on variables such as weight, impact and pressure, which consequently reduces response times and costs. With this strategy, the Company competitively offers products of non-conventional colors and finishing, products which are not easily obtained in the market or that have complex forms.

In order to obtain these awards, Vitro had to demonstrate before a jury that the containers presented are designed and manufactured with advanced technology and according to the criteria and needs of each client, resulting in a product not only attractive, but ergonomic, enhancing the characteristics of its content regardless if it is a beverage, food or a perfume.

The 6 products distinguished as “Sustainable Packaging” were developed according to the sustainability and environment care criteria, which implies aspects such as pollution prevention, control of greenhouse gasses emissions, waste handling on water, land, and air, and their potential risks, aspects in which Vitro is constantly working on.

Since 1985, the Mexican Containers and Packaging Association annually holds this event which acknowledges containers’ creative and innovative attributes, granting a special award to the best in each category, taking into consideration: technology used, sustainability of the container, and if its appealing to consumers.

In order to achieve the distinction of “Sustainable Packaging” the following aspects were evaluated: reduction of the container’s weight, optimization of energy usage during transportation and storage, reusability, recyclability, post-consumption reuse, disposal facility, communication to consumers of the container´s sustainable attributes, green certifications granted to the product and having demonstrated its benefits to society and/or influential community.

The valorization of glass as the best option to package products is increasingly confirmed, since the consumers are choosing it considering that it is superior in the following five key factors: purity, safety, quality, versatility and its easy recycling capacity. During the years in which the Envase y Embalaje Estelar award ceremony has been held, Vitro has been present and invariably recognized by its containers in different categories, while a lot of its designs have also won international awards.