Despite the best efforts of the State's dairies, people are still crying over spilt milk. Carton openings have grown more and more complicated over the past number of years, and the latest offering, from Glanbia Foods, has done little to dry the populace's infuriated, despairing and often milk-spattered eyes.
Glanbia Foods was formed two years ago following the merger of Premier Dairies and Avonmore and is the biggest milk distributor in the State.
Its new "easy-opening" spout, on one-litre cartons of Premier Dairies and Avonmore milk, has seen breakfast rage reach new heights. Since its introduction at the start of December The Irish Times has witnessed grown men reduced to using their teeth to prise the plastic lid from the milk carton, only to be left with most of the milk spattered over their faces.
The new spout is on the top of the carton and employs a means of "integrating" the plastic into the cardboard packaging. A plastic lid is "welded" to the spout and should be peeled back to reveal the milk inside. The effort needed to do this, however, can lead to spillage, particularly if the customer is squeezing the carton too firmly by its sides.
Mr Eamon McKelvey, product inspector with the National Milk Agency, said the dairies which used the new spout were "aware of the difficulties" consumers were having.
"I have been speaking to one of the representatives of the dairies and he said they had had numerous correspondence about the new spouts."
Mr Maurice Cullen, marketing manager for Glanbia Foods, the only dairy to use the new spout, said the majority of contacts from the public about the new spout were positive.
"There have been a number of complaints," he said, "but you are always going to get that when you make changes to the packaging of something as universally used as milk. It's a matter of people getting used to it.
"The reason it was introduced was to offer an improved product to the customer in terms of ease of opening, hygiene and cost."
The new spout, he said, was introduced by the food packaging manufacturer, Tetra Pak. Glanbia had been modifying its milk-packaging machinery for about a year before the spout's introduction. Mr Cullen would not specify how much the modifications had cost, but said "significant millions" had been spent.
Mr Donal Buckley, commercial director with Tetra Pak (Ireland), said the new spout was used throughout the world.
"It offers a customer-friendly product, easy pouring and reduces the use of plastic. A lot of research and investment has gone into it," he said. Research was ongoing, he continued, and the latest spout was the newest development in a process which has seen screw-top spouts, lid-and-foil spouts and push-in round spouts. According to Mr McKelvey there is a technique which promises to get the carton open with the milk still intact.
"If you place one hand flat on the top of the carton to hold it and then pass the other hand over to peel back the spout-lid, you will get it open without spillage."