Stackable package

A stackable container comprising:

• a carton formed from a single blank of a sheet material having,
• a substantially rectangular base,
• first and second end walls extending upwardly from said base,
• two side walls extending upwardly from said base, and
• two top flaps, each top flap being hinged from the top of one of said side walls to substantially close the carton in a closed position and each top flap being selectively engageable against the outer face of the respective side wall in an open position;
• a first end wall reinforcing element engaging against said first end wall;
• a second end wall reinforcing element engaging against said second end wall;
• each end wall reinforcing element comprising a paper board of at least one corrugated ply having flutes and having at least a pair of outer plies and being formed from a blank having a first elongate region, a second elongate region shorter in length than said first elongate region so that each reinforcing element has end portions of one ply for minimizing the thickness of said end portions and maximizing the space within said container, at least two bridging regions connecting said elongate regions, and a cut out portion between said bridging regions, said blank being folded transversely through said bridging regions along fold lines substantially parallel to the elongate axis of said elongate regions to define at least two projections extending above said end walls, the flutes of the corrugations of said at least one corrugated ply extending substantially perpendicular to said base;
• openings in said base adjacent each end wall reinforcing element and aligned with said at least two projections so that each opening indexes over a projection of an end wall reinforcing element of an adjacent carton in a stack of like stackable cartons;
• and
• at least one aperture in each top flap corresponding to each of said at least two projections for receiving a respective one of said at least two projections upon closing of each top flap over each end wall reinforcing element;
• so that said containers are stackable with said at least two projections of each end wall reinforcing element of one container engageable in said openings in said base of an adjacent container, and engageable in said at least one aperture in said top flaps in said open and closed positions, and said top flaps strengthen the stack against racking when said containers are closed.