Cosmetics producer L’Oréal has partnered with LanzaTech and Total to create the world’s first bottle made from captured and recycled carbon emissions.
The conversion process takes place in three steps. First, LanzaTech captures industrial carbon emissions and converts them into ethanol using a unique biological process.
Next, thanks to an innovative dehydration process jointly developed with IFP Axens, Total converts the ethanol into ethylene before polymerizing it into polyethylene that, according to the company, has the same technical characteristics as its fossil counterpart.
L’Oréal then uses this polyethylene to produce packaging that reportedly has the same quality and properties as conventional polyethylene.
LanzaTech’s CEO, Jennifer Holmgren, said: “This partnership is based on a shared goal of creating a cleaner planet for everyone. We are grateful to both L’Oréal and Total for their commitment to reducing the carbon intensity of their activities.
“Together, we can reduce the carbon footprint of packaging by converting carbon emissions into useful products, making single-use carbon a thing of the past.”
Senior vice president of polymers at Total, Valérie Goff, added: “This partnership is an excellent example of collaboration between industrial firms in developing the plastics of the future produced from recycled carbon and meets a strong demand from our customers.
“The development of this new pathway of valuing industrial carbon emissions also contributes to the Group’s commitment to get to net zero in Europe by 2050.”
Jacques Playe, packaging and development director at L’Oréal, said: “L’Oréal is constantly improving the environmental footprint of its packaging. With this innovation converting carbon emissions into polyethylene, we aim to develop new sustainable packaging solutions.
“We have the ambition to use this sustainable material in our bottle of shampoo and conditioner by 2024 and we hope other companies will join us in using this breakthrough innovation.”
Looking ahead, the partners intend to continue working together on scaling the production of these sustainable plastics.
Schoeller Allibert has launched a new and upgraded version of its Maxinest container for the food processing and grocery retail markets.
Jon Walkington, retail and system integrator sales director at Schoeller Allibert UK, commented: “Maxinest Evo represents the evolution of the original Maxinest range of products which, after facilitating hundreds of millions of journeys since their mass-adoption in the 1990s, remains the standard on which food and grocery retail supply chains operate today.
“During the past 30 years, numerous companies have tried to replicate the original Maxinest container, resulting in a range of ‘copy-cat’ products boasting a lower price point but with typically short-lived performance. With a combination of input from the world’s leading injection moulding technology companies and Schoeller Allibert’s unique plastic engineering know-how, the Maxinest Evo range of products has been born.”
Produced for retailers operating in a new era of e-commerce and supply chain complexity brought about by COVID-19, the company says that Maxinest Evo is the ideal solution for in-store display, home delivery, click & collect and intra-logistics.
The enhanced range includes extra ventilation, without compromising structural integrity, for better food preservation during transit.
With in-house European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) approved recycling sites, Maxinest Evo is manufactured from EFSA food-approved PP material, reportedly guaranteeing safety in the food supply chain. The company says that its manufacturing process also upholds its commitment to creating a circular economy.
Walkington added: “We developed Maxinest Evo in response to increasing calls from customers to optimise efficiency, whilst also ensuring the product is more environmentally friendly to drive down waste and cost through the supply chain. No similar product can provide the strength, durability, length of service, and sustainability, at the same price point, as that of Maxinest Evo.
“These totes are high value-add, returnable, reusable, and recyclable. Not only are the containers compatible with the existing Maxinest range, but we can process reclaimed material from old or damaged containers and recycle them to manufacture new products, minimising our waste and environmental impact.”
In partnership with Paboco and the three other companies in the Paboco Pioneer Community, Coca-Cola has revealed a first-generation prototype of its paper bottle.
The company has not yet realised its ultimate goal of creating a 100% paper-based bottle, as the structure of the prototype consists of a paper shell with a plastic closure and a plastic liner inside.
While the plastic used is 100% recycled and can be recycled again after use, the company aims to eventually create a paper bottle that can be recycled like any paper. Coca-Cola says that the next step is to find a solution to create a bottle without the plastic liner.
“Our vision is to create a paper bottle that can be recycled like any other type of paper, and this prototype is the first step on the way to achieving this. A paper bottle opens up a whole new world of packaging possibilities, and we are convinced that paper packaging has a role to play in the future,” says Stijn Franssen, EMEA R&D packaging innovation manager at Coca-Cola, who is working on the project.
Just like other types of packaging, a paper bottle of the future must adhere to the same high safety and quality standards for food and drink packaging that currently apply. Stijn and this team are putting the bottle through testing in a lab to see how it performs in the refrigerator, how strong it is, and how well it protects the beverage inside.
“We also reflect on how our consumers will react to this paper bottle. Topics like when and where it could be sold and how it can be recycled are all considered. The bottle must be explored from every perspective to ensure that we make the bottle the best it can be,” concludes Stijn.
Consumer goods giant Unilever has stepped up its strategy to incorporate more recycled plastic, as well as reducing its use of the material.
The company said that one year on from its pledge to halve its use of virgin plastic by 2025, it has increased its use of post-consumer recycled plastic (PCR) to around 75,000 tonnes. Unilever added that it expects its use of PCR to double in the next 12 months.
Unilever has also said that it plans to save 4,500 tonnes of plastic through the launch of innovations such as recyclable paper-based ice cream tubs.
Unilever chief executive Alan Jope said: “Throwaway culture and throwaway business models continue to dominate our lives and damage our planet. Despite challenging conditions, we must not turn our backs on plastic pollution. It is crucial that we – and the rest of the industry – stay the course, cut the amount of plastic we use, and rapidly transition to a circular economy.”
Richard Slater, Unilever’s chief R&D officer added: “To tackle the root causes of plastic waste we need to think differently about packaging. We need bold innovations that challenge existing designs, materials and business models. Our priority is to fundamentally rethink our approach to packaging, and pave the way for new solutions such as reusable and refillable formats.
“By adopting a ‘test, learn and refine’ mentality, we’ve developed innovative solutions that will help people cut their use of plastic for good. One product doing just that is our ultra-concentrated formula for OMO which is diluted at home and uses 72% less plastic. After a successful launch in Brazil, we’re now rolling this out in other countries across Latin America, Europe and the Middle East. Similarly, our Cif Ecorefill started out as a pilot in the UK and has since been rolled out across Europe, Canada and Australia.
“It’s still early days. But by making refill and reuse formats more widely available, accessible, and affordable, we hope to use our scale and reach to drive lasting change.”
Woolworths has launched a recyclable paper meat tray across a selection of its Own Brand beef nationally.
The new paper trays used for Woolworths’ Specially Selected and Grass Fed beef ranges are the first step in a plan to make all Woolworths’ Own Brand red meat trays recyclable over the coming months.
The redesign features a paper tray and fresh seal film, using 75 per cent less plastic than the previous packaging. It is to eliminate 2.2 tonnes of plastic from the supply chain each year across seven popular beef cuts.
Consumers can recycle the trays in their curbside recycling bin by peeling back the vacuum films used to seal in the meat.
The film covering and lining the trays can also be recycled through the REDcycle bins located at every Woolworths store, along with any other household soft plastics.
“Over the last three years we’ve embarked on a sustained program to rethink our own packaging across a wide range of categories. We know sustainable packaging is important to our customers and we’re pleased to begin our transition to recyclable meat trays, starting with our Specially Selected and Grass Fed beef ranges,” Cullen said.
“Packaging plays a vital role in maintaining product freshness and quality, but it’s important we do it in a sustainable way and encourage more recycling. Our dedicated sustainability specialists will continue to explore new opportunities to increase the recyclability of our packaging as part of our broader commitment to help build a circular economy, where waste is treated as a resource.”
To help make recycling easier for its customers, Woolworths includes simple, easy to follow recycling labels developed by Planet Ark on its Own Brand products. These show how each element of packaging can be discarded either through kerbside recycling, by returning to the store for recycling, or as general waste.
A Hong Kong start-up company has launched an eco-friendly plastic bag dubbed “Invisible Bag” which can easily dissolve in hot water (above 80 degrees Celsius). More importantly, its ingredients are non-toxic and will not cause harm to the environment.
It started by Devana Ng and her French husband Flavien Chaussegros, who are passionate about trail running. Last year, they saw the mountains full of plastic waste and decided to do their part for the planet by reducing the amount of waste. They founded Distinctive Action to promote sustainable and environmentally friendly products. The Invisible Bag is made of Polyvinyl Alcohol (known as PVA) together with plant-based starch, glycerin and water.
After soaking in water for a few minutes, the Invisible Bag will dissolve in hot water, which will turn milky white. However, it is environmentally safe, non-toxic, biodegradable, and leaves no microplastics behind, according to the Distinctive Action’s official website.
The bag material is commonly used in industries, such as medical and personal care applications. Distinctive Action aims to general use as an alternative solution to replace conventional plastics.
The use of Eco-bags are increasingly being used by small shops with the same goal, such as second-hand clothing stores, coffee shops, restaurants and more. The Invisible Bag can hold 3-4kg.
A Chinese research team based in Qingdao, Shandong province, is developing a new technology for food packaging that is expected to be ecologically friendly and pose no threat to people’s health.
Xu Jiachao, a professor at the College of Food Science and Engineering at Ocean University of China, led the research team. The team used alginate, an extract from brown algae, rather than plastic, to make food wrappers.
“The food wrapper can achieve 100 percent degradation in 6 to 12 months, without any environmental pollution,” said Xu, adding that it is also safe for people. It can endure temperatures ranging from -80 to 120 C.
Xu and his team started their research in 2012 and conducted tens of thousands of experiments. “Alginate is renewable and nontoxic, and has excellent film-forming properties when crosslinked by calcium ions. But it tends to be fragile,” said Xu, who has focused on research of marine creatures for many years.
Finally, the team added another ion and tried to make the new food wrapper stronger. They called it “double-ions film-forming technology” and have applied for a patent. “The technology still needs improving, and we will conduct more experiments,” Xu said.
Most food wrappers in the market to date are made from plastic.
In the end, Unilever’s recycled material will be used to produce a detergent bottle from 100 percent recycled plastic: an initiative unites five partners in Hamburg and shows how a recycling cycle can function regionally.
Stadtreinigung Hamburg, Veolia, Unilever, Budni and TU Hamburg have implemented a local recycling project. Hamburger Stadtreinigung collects the packaging waste in the recycling bin or „Gelber Sack” and delivers it to Veolia’s Hamburg sorting plant. There the waste is sorted and the plastic packaging required for the project, made of high-density polyethylene (HDPE), is pressed into bales.
In another plant, the HDPE is sorted by colour, crushed, cleaned, processed and formed into regranulates. This recycled material is finally used by Unilever to produce a “Sieben Generationen” brand of detergent bottles. This is sold by the trading partner Budni. The plastic is used as product packaging before and after recycling, in a bottle-to-bottle cycle.
Little recycled material from the recycling bin so faf
Hamburg’s “Wertstoff Innovative” was launched by the five project partners in spring 2019. All processes are to be accompanied by extensive tests and inspections, in cooperation with the Technical University of Hamburg. The findings are to be used to optimize the sorting and recycling processes. The partners emphasize that packaging made from recycled material is increasingly coming onto the market. However, up to now mainly recyclates from the deposit-paid PET one-way bottle stream have been used.
On the other hand, there is hardly any packaging whose plastic comes exclusively from packaging waste from a region’s reusable bin and does not contain recycled materials from production or industrial waste. The challenge was, among other things, that the recyclate has some differences to virgin plastic: it smells different, it looks different, it behaves differently during processing. However, the project partners were able to show with scientific support that a new high-quality packaging can be created from high-quality recyclate.
Flint Group Packaging Inks has unveiled TerraCode, a water-based ink and coating range for paper and board packaging applications. TerraCode is available in three variations – Bio, Hybrid and Balance – which are derived from biorenewable resources. The new ink and coating family delivers competitive pH and viscosity stability for low press side ink maintenance.
“TerraCode inks can align well with end user storylines about greener, safer packaging. These inks have very low volatile organic compounds – sometimes none – and are easy to clean on press when compared to, for example, solvent-based inks,” Scott Mosley, Vice President of Technology, Packaging Inks North America, Flint Group, tells PackagingInsights.
“The storyline further improves when you start talking about water-based inks formulated with a high percentage of bio-renewable raw materials,” they continue. The “historical concern” related to water-based inks centers around ink handling, press speeds and drying can, therefore, become “a thing of the past” with the right training and formulating, says Mosley.
To maintain pH and viscosity stability, Flint takes a twofold approach. First, the company takes advantage of using best in class raw materials which inherently help keep critical properties in ink technologies. Besides that, Flint employs world-class field service technicians that provide insight into today’s on-press requirements to ensure seamless press runs.
Challenges along the way The R&D process was not as seamless as it appears to be, Mosley acknowledges. “The biggest challenge was creating a versatile product line with a tiered approach that could easily align with CPC’s strategies and objectives around the use of bio-renewable content.”
“We learned quickly that not all customers’ demands are the same – they are not all ‘at the same place’ within their bio-renewable storyline. With TerraCode, Flint Group Packaging Inks offer three tiers of products that match up well with the needs of the packaging industry today. Printers and CPC’s can choose the system which is best for them – where they are today and where they want to be in the future,” Mosley affirms.
There are three TerraCode variations available:
TerraCode Bio offers the highest renewable content of the company’s range. Built from at least 90 percent renewable materials, this option provides excellent print quality and press stability.
TerraCode Hybrid is a combination of renewable and conventional raw materials. A typical formulation contains more than 50 percent renewable content with a balance of high-performance synthetic ingredients for applications that require maximum performance and protection.
TerraCode Balance is built on a biomass balance solution. These products can be made to the same specification as existing technology.
When asked why Flint doesn’t make all of its inks throughout its entire ink portfolio “green”, Mosley replies: “We must add that there are many ways for any company to be ‘eco-friendly’ – more than just the products a company markets and sells. We need to consider how we run our facilities and how we work with vendors, employees and customers.”
13 Aug 2020 — Flint Group Packaging Inks has unveiled TerraCode, a water-based ink and coating range for paper and board packaging applications. TerraCode is available in three variations – Bio, Hybrid and Balance – which are derived from biorenewable resources. The new ink and coating family delivers competitive pH and viscosity stability for low press side ink maintenance.
“TerraCode inks can align well with end user storylines about greener, safer packaging. These inks have very low volatile organic compounds – sometimes none – and are easy to clean on press when compared to, for example, solvent-based inks,” Scott Mosley, Vice President of Technology, Packaging Inks North America, Flint Group, tells PackagingInsights.
TerraCode inks are free of harmful mineral oils and solvents and designed for safe handling.“The storyline further improves when you start talking about water-based inks formulated with a high percentage of bio-renewable raw materials,” they continue. The “historical concern” related to water-based inks centers around ink handling, press speeds and drying can, therefore, become “a thing of the past” with the right training and formulating, says Mosley.
To maintain pH and viscosity stability, Flint takes a twofold approach. First, the company takes advantage of using best in class raw materials which inherently help keep critical properties in ink technologies. Besides that, Flint employs world-class field service technicians that provide insight into today’s on-press requirements to ensure seamless press runs.
Challenges along the way The R&D process was not as seamless as it appears to be, Mosley acknowledges. “The biggest challenge was creating a versatile product line with a tiered approach that could easily align with CPC’s strategies and objectives around the use of bio-renewable content.”
“We learned quickly that not all customers’ demands are the same – they are not all ‘at the same place’ within their bio-renewable storyline. With TerraCode, Flint Group Packaging Inks offer three tiers of products that match up well with the needs of the packaging industry today. Printers and CPC’s can choose the system which is best for them – where they are today and where they want to be in the future,” Mosley affirms.
There are three TerraCode variations available:
TerraCode Bio offers the highest renewable content of the company’s range. Built from at least 90 percent renewable materials, this option provides excellent print quality and press stability.
TerraCode Hybrid is a combination of renewable and conventional raw materials. A typical formulation contains more than 50 percent renewable content with a balance of high-performance synthetic ingredients for applications that require maximum performance and protection.
TerraCode Balance is built on a biomass balance solution. These products can be made to the same specification as existing technology.
When asked why Flint doesn’t make all of its inks throughout its entire ink portfolio “green”, Mosley replies: “We must add that there are many ways for any company to be ‘eco-friendly’ – more than just the products a company markets and sells. We need to consider how we run our facilities and how we work with vendors, employees and customers.”
Furthermore, some pigments, along with a few important additives and resins, are yet to be qualified as “renewable” materials, says Mosley. “The path to this answer lies in partnerships at all levels of the packaging supply chain. There will need to be some compromises and some innovations by all parties to completely overcome that hurdle. Innovations like TerraCode are a big step in the right direction.”
“As mentioned, it is truly a team effort – involving all parties in the supply and value chain. As partnerships and innovations allow this transition, more products and technologies will follow,” he concludes.
With the assistance of chemicals company SABIC, Unilever will introduce its Magnum ice cream pints range in new tubs and lids made with fully recyclable and recycled polypropylene plastic (rPP). This follows an initial pilot phase in Belgium, the Netherlands and Spain last year. This year, more than 7 million rPP Magnum tubs and lids will be introduced across other European countries. From 2021 onward, the new packs will be rolled out globally.
As of last May, Unilever set a broader company goal to halve its virgin plastic use by 2025. Reducing its total use of plastic by more than 100,000 tons demands a “fundamental rethink” in Unilever’s approach to packaging and products, a company spokesperson previously shared with PackagingInsights.
“Through this new approach, we hope to lead the food and refreshment industry toward a more [environmentally] sustainable future, paving the way to a circular economy. These days, consumers – rightly – expect all packaging to be sustainable. By keeping our plastic material in the loop, we are contributing to a healthier planet and preventing plastic pollution,” says Julien Barraux, Global Vice President for Magnum.
“With more in-home consumption due to COVID-19, the introduction of these tubs and their reduced impact on the environment becomes even more relevant as the world prepares for a new future,” he continues.
New technology for new needs Unilever indicates that the rPP used in Magnum is not obtained by traditional mechanical recycling, as this is “not suitable” for food contact packaging. “We use a recycling process that transforms the plastic waste into resin with the same characteristics as virgin food-grade resin,” the company underscores.
“This new technology allows us to recycle low quality, mixed plastic waste that would otherwise most likely be destined for incineration or landfill. It is not currently possible to produce food-grade rPP with any other form of recycling system,” Unilever adds.
Unilever has already tinkered with circular solutions in the ice cream sector. In March, Stora Enso packaged Unilever Finland’s Ingman ice cream in its Performa Cream 1 L paperboard cartons. Replacing standard PE coating, Stora Enso’s plant-based PE Green barrier coating will help Unilever reduce its use of fossil-based materials and reduce waste.
Last August, Unilever relaunched its branded Carte d’Or ice cream in compostable paperboard packaging by Stora Enso. The container is made from certified renewable fiber, sporting a biodegradable barrier coating. After use, it can be either recycled or composted in industrial composting.
“Plastic is a valuable material. It is crucial for the safe and efficient distribution of products, and it has a lower carbon footprint than many alternative materials. [Therefore], it has its place. That place is inside the circular economy – where it is reused, recycled or composted and kept in a loop to stop it from ever finding its way into the environment,” Unilever concludes.
