Stackable package capable of division

A composite tray and stacker structure for a divisible stackable package of a plurality of identical containers, said structure having inside and outside surfaces and comprising:

• A) a rectangular tray bottom wall having side and end edges;
• B) a central transverse reverse fold line across the tray bottom wall;
• C) a pair of rectangular end walls having top, bottom and side edges, said end walls being connected along their bottom edges to opposite ends of said bottom wall along spaced apart parallel fold lines and folded upwardly from said bottom wall, said end walls being of a width approximately equal to the height of the containers to be packaged;
• D) a pair of relatively narrow end wall product retainer panels co-extensive with and connected to each side edge of both of said end walls, each connected along a fold line at the respective side edges of the end walls and folded inwardly from the end walls;
• E) a pair of rectangular spacer elements comprising the top wall of said package, said spacer elements having front, back and end edges, each of said spacer elements being connected along one end edge to one of said end walls along a fold line at the top edge of each of the end walls and folded inwardly from the tops of the end walls, the total width of said spacer elements being equal to the length of the bottom tray;
• F) a pair of rectangular weight-bearing stacker elements each connected to one of said top wall spacer elements along a fold line along the edge thereof which is opposite from the end edge connecting the spacer element to the end wall and folded downwardly from the top wall into abutment with each other, the width of said stacker elements being approximately equal to the width of the end walls;
• G) a pair of rectangular gluing tabs each connected to one of said stacker elements along a fold line spaced from and parallel to the fold lines between said stacker elements and said top wall spacer elements, said gluing tabs being folded inwardly and in abutment with the top surface of said tray bottom wall adjacent to and on opposite sides of said reverse fold line;
• H) a pair of relatively narrow product retainer panels co-extensive with and connected to each side edge of both of said stacker elements, each being connected along a fold line at the respective side edges of the stacker elements and folded inwardly from the stacker elements, said stacker element retainer panels being of a width substantially the same as said end wall retainer panels;
• I) a pair of notches in the edges of each of said stacker element retainer panels of one of said stacker elements, said notches being in the edge opposite from the fold line connecting said panels to the stacker elements, said notches being narrower in depth than the width of the retainer panels and spaced from the ends of retainer panels adjacent to the gluing tab;
• J) a pair of relatively narrow product retainer flaps co-extensive with and connected to each side edge of each of said top wall spacer elements along fold lines at the side edges of said top wall spacer elements, said top wall retainer flaps being of a width substantially the same as said end wall and stacker element retainer panels, and said top wall retainer flaps extending over and in abutment with the top ends of said end wall and stacker element retainer panels;
• and
• K) a pair of relatively narrow bottom wall product retainer flaps of a width substantially the same as said top wall retainer flaps and said end wall and stacker element retainer panels, said bottom wall flaps being co-extensive with and connected to each side edge of said tray bottom wall along fold lines at the side edges of the bottom wall, said bottom wall retainer flaps extending over and in abutment with the bottom ends of said end wall and stacker element retainer panels.