Category: News & Updates

Recycling businesses in Togo and Nigeria, bioplastics made from invasive plants from Lake Victoria, and a process of waste conversion to create safe and affordable cooking fuel in Kenya are amongst the recipients of £4 million as part of the Afri-Plastics Challenge, which aims to cut down on plastic pollution in Africa.

Run by innovation prize experts Challenge Works and funded by the government of Canada, the Afri-Plastics Challenge initiative aims to reduce amount of plastic waste both on land and in the ocean in and around the African continent.

Amongst the companies receiving funding in Strand 1, Green Industry Plast – Togo, based in Lomé, involves the foundation of collection units and sorting facilities for plastic waste in collaboration with local authorities in Togo’s major cities. As well as reducing the amount of pollution in the natural environment, the solution aims to utilise conversion machinery to produce bricks, paving slabs, whiteboards for use in schools, and more.

Furthermore, it is expected to create new jobs and facilitate further education about environmentalism by recruiting and training vulnerable women and young people who no longer attend school to sort and reuse waste materials. Each town is set to be equipped with bins for selective sorting.

“Up to 40% of households in Lomédump their rubbish in the natural environment – it is a public health menace and destroying the Togolese coastal and marine ecosystem,” explains Gado Bemah, CEO of Green Industry Plast – Togo. “We are building a sustainable and effective solution to plastic waste management in Togo for an inclusive circular economy by integrating the collection, sorting, and recycling of plastic waste. A grassroots approach will result in cleaner cities and prevent water pollution.

“Our ambition is to implement and increase recycling schemes for waste plastic and to build new warehouses to increase storage capacity. We want to equip every stakeholder in the city’s living environment – from City Hall to private citizens – with the tools to recycle to improve public health and living conditions.”

Meanwhile, Chanja Datti is an in-house, technology-driven, end-to-end process for plastics waste recycling involving the direct purchase of collected plastic from waste pickers and aggregators in an effort to support marginalised groups. With a series of recycling hubs currently operating across Abuja, the purchased waste is transferred to Chanja Datti’s aggregation, processing, and manufacturing plant, where it is processed into post-consumer recycled plastics to be sold to manufacturers.

Olufunto Boroffice, CEO of Chanja Datti, continues:“Over 64 million tons of waste is generated annually in Nigeria; unfortunately, only 10-15% of this is collected and recycled, with approximately 200,000 tons of plastic waste entering our water-bodies annually.

“Our aim is to establish a series of recycling hubs across northern Nigeria, building on our success in Abuja. The collected plastics will be processed and sold as post-consumer recycled plastics to plastics manufacturers for use by large bottle-to-bottle manufacturing companies.”

Mega Gas is based in Nairobi, Kenya, and seeks to convert unsorted plastic waste, especially polyethylene, into clean and affordable cooking gas through a patented process. Its thermal cracking process of distillation and compression is thought to produce clean gaseous fuel without generating emissions, residue, or further pollution, with the fuel harvested in metal cylinders for easy use and handling.

“4.2 million people die annually from indoor pollution because they do not have access to clean and affordable energy; meanwhile, humanity produces about 300 million tons of plastic waste each year, with much of this ending up in our rivers and polluting our planet,” says CEO Peter Njeri. “Mega Gas aims to solve both of these problems by recycling plastic waste into clean, affordable energy source. We use a patented thermal cracking process that converts plastic waste into a gas which is harvested, compressed into cylinders, and sold at affordable prices.”

In Strand 2, Chemolex’s Biopactic solution claims to be a recyclable, reusable, and 100% biodegradable material that hopes to replace single-use plastic polymers in food and product packaging. Produced from invasive water hyacinth plants that grow in Lake Victoria, Kenya, the solution hopes to cut down on the environmental, economic, and health impacts of their aggressive growth as well as cutting down on plastic waste.

“We supply 100% biodegradable and sustainable bioplastic material – Biopactic – that is a superior alternative to the single use plastic polymers used in food and product packaging and diaper manufacturing,” says Clifford Okoth Owino, founder and CEO of Chemolex. “Our patented precision bio-conversion technology enables us to sustainably utilise the invasive water hyacinth plants for bioplastic production to replace the use of these single-use plastics.

“Over the course of the last year, we have completed market research and analysis for our products and have started commercial production and supply. We currently supply more than 8,000 pieces of biodegradable bread bags and other customised packaging solutions across the Kenyan market. Chemolex has also developed biodegradable diapers and sanitary pads which are currently available in the Kenyan market.”

As a Strand 3 winner, Ukwenza VR reaches out to Kenyan consumers via virtual reality technology to demonstrate the journey taken by discarded plastic at end of life. This is hoped to raise awareness of the environmental damage caused by plastic waste and encourage consumers to dispose of their plastic waste effectively.

“Plastic pollution is a challenge that affects many cities and communities in Kenya,” says Ukwenza VR co-founder Njeri Ndonga. “The main cause of this in informal settlements is an over-reliance on plastic and a lack of adequate waste management systems. There is also inadequate sensitisation within communities to the effects of plastic waste on their lives and environment.

“Schools generate a significant amount of waste. School children lack skills, knowledge, and support because they have no basic formal or comprehensive environmental curriculum that teaches about plastic waste. While the current school curriculum touches on plastics, it is not enough to bring about behaviour change without an investment in their supplementary education.

“We work to bridge the learning gap by providing immersive and engaging educational virtual reality (VR) content that complements the current educational systems in urban areas in Kenya. VR encourages problem solving, decision-making and behaviour change in both children and adults.”

Additionally, Baus Taka Enterprise’s #StopPlasticPollution Campaign is intended to promote the segregation of plastic waste from its source and spread awareness of responsible waste management practices. Its mobile app hosts competitions on plastic segregation with monetary incentives, as well as offering redeemable points for medical services in partnership with health clinics.

According to co-founder and CEO Dr Tayba Hatimy, “Mombasa is Kenya’s second largest city and East Africa’s largest port. It generates an estimated 708 tons of waste daily, 42 tons of which is plastic waste, of which 44% is uncollected. Households in Mombasa do not have access to public waste management services, and so turn to informal waste managers, who often illegally dump mixed waste. This waste then makes its way into Mombasa’s rivers and oceans.

“The #StopPlasticPollution Campaign addresses this plastic mismanagement challenge at the source, to reduce marine plastic pollution. The Baus Taka mobile app is a platform to collect data on waste, and provide monetary incentives to members of the community who sort and trade their used plastic, which is then collected by Baus Taka and transported to recycling centres. Users are rewarded with points which can be traded for health services at partner health clinics, or access to entrepreneurship training to support their success as plastic waste managers.”

In Europe, an AI-based waste sorting solution from Lixo and a reusable alternative for e-commerce packaging from Rhinopaq recently received their own funding as part of Circular Valley’s Circular Economy Accelerator Programme.

Bionanopolys has also launched an open call to give five projects fully-funded access to its fourteen upgraded pilot plants and complementary services for the development, testing, and/or scaling up of bionanomaterials.

Source:

https://packagingeurope.com/news/afri-plastics-challenge-provides-funding-for-african-recycling-businesses-new-bioplastics-waste-conversion-processes-and-more/9548.article

In collaboration with the bakery business Borgesius, the retailer is implementing paper bread clips for its bread bags. Sell-by and best-before dates can be printed directly onto the clips, which are said to be easily recyclable in a reported first for bread bag packaging.

“We are constantly looking at possibilities to use less material, as much recycled material as possible and 100% recyclable material,” says Henk van Harn, director of merchandising and sourcing at Albert Heijn. “The well-known plastic bread clips, of which we use 125 million annually, cannot be recycled because they are too small for the sorting machines used for plastic waste. The transition to paper is a nice interpretation of our mission ’Making better food accessible together. For everyone.”

The paper clips will begin their roll-out this week and are set to package more products in the coming months; they are expected to completely replace plastic clips by the summer.

Another effort expected to improve the recyclability of bread packaging came in the form of WM and Dow’s pilot scheme thought to enable the kerbside recycling of hard-to-recycle plastic films in Hickory Hills, Illinois.

Morrisons also opened a pilot store that aimed to enable ‘plastic-free shopping’ through such solutions as selling ‘loose’, packaging-free frozen bread.

Source:

https://packagingeurope.com/news/albert-heijn-rolls-out-bread-clips-made-of-paper

Exploring bioplastic biodegradability and how it will impact our future

According to Report Insights, the biodegradable plastics market was worth 7.65 billion USD in 2022 and is projected to exceed 22.12 billion USD by 2030. While the appetite for plastics made from natural feedstocks is increasing, what can we expect for the future of bioplastic research? Here Dr Ashlee Jahnke, head of research and development  at plastic substitute specialist Teysha Technologies, discusses common problems with bioplastics and how recent innovations in biodegradability will shape our future.

Many commercial developments show promising results and improvements in the technologies used to produce bio-based materials. For example, ABB has set out to automate NatureWorks’ bioplastics plant in Thailand, which could improve production throughput and help accelerate consumer uptake in bioplastics. What’s more, continued research has led to new and innovative products, such as the Röchling Group’s latest sustainable bioplastics, Röchling-BioBoom and Röchling-ReLoop, which are manufactured using renewable raw materials like cellulose.

While this is certainly commendable progress expected to strengthen the sustainability of recycled materials and bioplastics, questions remain over just how sustainable some bioplastics truly are. For example, many bio-based plastics still use petroleum-derived plasticiser additives to give them mechanical properties akin to traditional plastics.

Not only does this continue to rely on the availability of fossil-fuels, it also greatly affects the material’s biodegradability and environmental impacts. These materials will still require industrial processing to be recycled or broken down, potentially involving energy-intensive processes like catalytic pyrolysis. It’s important that future innovations tackle these issues so that the entire lifecycle of a bio-material can be considered truly sustainable. With this in mind, what can we expect from future bioplastic research?

Great expectations

One expected development is more companies working to make improvements in the large-scale processes required to source and produce bio-based materials, increasing opportunities for further testing and certifications through collaborations with strategic partners. Additionally, continued research will build upon 2022’s successes, where access to new polymer compositions greatly increased. The current library includes polymers containing a single carbohydrate-based monomer unit, multiple carbohydrate-based monomers, and other comonomers derived from natural sources such as agricultural waste.

Perhaps the biggest recent advancement has been in the development of natural polymer materials with tuneable thermal, mechanical, and degradation properties. For example, polymers containing varying percentages of the same two comonomers have demonstrated a range of glass transition temperatures from -40 to 60 degrees Celsius. These thermal transition properties are indicative of mechanical properties, like stiffness, elasticity and brittleness. By demonstrating varying transition temperatures, while maintaining molar mass, dispersity and thermal stability, certain characteristics of the resulting materials can be chemically designed and tuned to suit the needs of a given application.

Importantly, the advantages of more specialised, higher-cost monomers can be obtained by incorporating only partial percentages of the monomer into the final polymer structure. The enhanced tunability that this strategy allows will have a significant impact on the ultimate breadth of applications that these materials can be used in.

These important steps in the search for a truly sustainable bioplastic have been conducted by biodegradable biopolymer specialist, Teysha Technologies. The company’s material family, AggiePol, has a wide range of properties, and some have been designed with the target of achieving biodegradation on the timeline required for OECD 310 Ready Biodegradability Certification. This assesses the aerobic biodegradability of organic substances in freshwater environments and was achieved by an AggiePol material in June 2022.

As the appetite for biodegradable bioplastics continues to grow, this research indicates that the future of bioplastics need not rely on harmful, finite fossil fuels or energy-intensive degradation processes.

To find out more about Teysha Technologies and it’s research, head to www.teyshatech.co.uk.

Source:

https://spnews.com/biodegradability/

By Charles Haverfield, Packaging Executive for US Packaging & Wrapping

Nestle recently announced a packaging makeover for one of its most recognizable products, KitKat. In Australia, the sweet treat will be trialled with recyclable paper wrappers as part of the company’s pledge to slash the use of virgin plastics by a third by 2025.

I explore whether paper-based alternatives are the best long-term solution over traditional plastic packaging for food products.

Weighing up costs

Packaging design and materials will inevitably be dominated by cost, with plastic remaining the most popular choice for many brands thanks to its durability, versatility and cost-effectiveness.

However, plastic is one of the biggest contributors to the global waste problem. The OECD predicts the amount of plastic waste produced globally is projected to triple to 1,231 million tonnes by 2060.

As a result, the government has set new regulations to tackle plastic packaging waste, such as the Plastic Packaging Tax, with brands facing costly fines should they not adhere to the new rules.

And with research finding 86 percent of under 45s are willing to pay more for sustainably packaged products, choosing paper-based packaging alternatives could not only avoid

Balanced branding

For most consumers, the packaging is the first interaction with a brand’s product and can make or break a sale. Manufacturers will therefore have to carefully consider how to avoid compromising brand identity when changing packaging.

Take Nestle as an example. The brand came under fire last year for changing the packaging for one of its most iconic and beloved chocolates, Quality Street. Nestle swapped its dual aluminium foil and cellulose to vegetable-based recyclable paper wrappers.

Other brands outside of the food packaging industry have seen greater success, such as L’Oreal developing a cardboard tube for La Roche-Posay’s Anthelios sunscreen.

However, it may be some time before we see 100 percent paper-based packaging and longer yet before this translates widespread across the beauty and food packaging industries.

Preserving products

Despite paper food packaging seeming like the more environmentally friendly option for its biodegradable properties, its poor barrier properties make food products more susceptible to light, oxygen and microbial degradation.

Food packaging manufacturers will therefore need to consider how paper-based alternatives can realistically match plastic packaging for food preservation without impacting its sustainable credentials.

Emerging technologies, such as water-based dispersion coatings, are hoping to provide improved barrier solutions for paper packaging. Unlike traditional plastic, aluminium or chemical coatings, dispersion coatings allow paper packaging to be fully recycled without separation processes while providing resistance to liquid and grease.

https://uspackagingandwrapping.com/

Source:

https://spnews.com/paper-based-alternatives/

A new report from Root reveals the top 5 challenges brands face when implementing a reuse and refill strategy and provides guidance on how to navigate them in this edition of the Spotlight.

‘Reuse and refill’ is a laudable aim – an environmental nirvana whereby customers make repeat in-store purchases using a single re-useable container. Less waste, less carbon, great customer experience, lower compliance fees, a better planet, and reassured shareholders – everyone’s a winner. Right?

Unfortunately not. The reality is that reuse and refill is still very much in its infancy. Any brands stepping into the arena right now will find themselves at the forefront of pioneering change in how consumers shop. Although brands have been discussing reuse and refill for some time, the simple fact is that whilst the ambition might be there, brands cannot do it alone. The practicalities of reuse and refill require the willingness and collaboration of global policymakers, manufacturers, supply chain partners, retailers, and, of course, customers to all play their part in making it happen.

At Root, we’ve worked with brands and producers looking to make the required changes to their business model. And for many brands, a successful transition involves completely reengineering their business and packaging strategy. It’s not something to be entered into lightly, and there will be challenges along the way.

Challenge 1: Lack of guidelines could result in more unsubstantiated ‘greenwashing’ claims

Policy guidelines are still in development and lack the detail needed to enable brands to develop a long-term reuse and refill strategy. The European Packaging and Packaging Waste Proposal has proposed new targets for specific industries. Still, with varying global definitions of ‘reuse’, i.e. the minimum times packaging can be refilled and when and how it should be cleaned, there are no clear and consistent guidelines for brands to follow. This could result in different brands, sectors, and markets interpreting the rules as they see fit, potentially leading to misleading ‘greenwash’ claims and operational chaos.

Challenge 2: Lack of clarity on lifecycle analysis can lead to the wrong action

Industry guidelines about what must be included in a reuse and refill lifecycle analysis are sparse. As a result, brands and retailers are coming up with their own methodologies to prove the worth of their programmes, and many are missing essential elements that could ultimately completely change the results. For instance, refillable packs need to be washed using water, heat, and chemicals. But many LCA studies completely leave this out of their analysis, instead focusing solely on select metrics, like the volume of material and carbon use.

Challenge 3: Reuse and refill is not just a bolt-on; it could require a fundamental change to your business model

Successfully transitioning to a reuse and refill model is not something that can be done half-heartedly. It requires commitment, a dedicated team, significant investment, and the right mindset across the entire business. Many brands have tried and failed, often because they haven’t put the right level of resources into making it happen, and even those that have, haven’t found it easy. It’s not just a case of bolting it on as a ‘nice to have’ – it needs to be placed at the centre of your product and packaging strategy.

Challenge 4: Consumers will accept or reject reuse and refill based on how easy it is for them to engage

For many brands that have trialled reuse and refill programmes, consumer buy-in was the final hurdle that tripped them up. Consumers will only engage with a reuse and refill programme if it’s simple and easy to use. Most consumers are keen to do the right thing, often choosing brands that fit their personal ethos and values, such as the desire for a more sustainable planet. But if the consumer experience is not entirely frictionless, previous trials have shown that many consumers revert back to buying ‘single use’, simply because reuse and refill was too complicated, expensive, or required too much effort.

Challenge 5: Brands need to collaborate and learn – even with their competitors

It’s not easy to be open and honest about the challenges you encounter, especially when your customers and competitors are watching. But reuse and refill is new territory for everyone, and the fastest route to success is to share experiences and best practice to avoid making the same costly mistakes. There are plenty of people and businesses out there already sharing their experiences and collaborating with each other. Through their willingness to have open and frank discussions in the public arena, together we can ensure reuse and refill becomes a reality that everyone can benefit from.

Download the free report – ‘Getting to the Root of Reuse + Refill’

Root’s team of packaging and sustainability experts has compiled a new report, ‘Getting to the Root of Reuse + Refill’, that takes a closer look at each of these challenges, with links to valuable frameworks, reports, and case studies from organisations, retailers and brands currently pioneering the reuse and refill concept.

To download the free report ‘Getting to the Root of Reuse + Refill’ go to https://root-innovation.com/getting-to-the-root-of-reuse-and-refill-report/.

Source:

https://packagingeurope.com/why-brands-are-failing-at-reuse-and-refill

Sainsbury’s has substituted the tray packaging of its beef mince range with vacuum packs in a move expected to reduce 55% of plastic per product and an overall 450 tonnes of plastic annually.

As it involves the complete removal of oxygen, the new packaging is expected to preserve the product’s freshness for longer. Furthermore, while the amount of beef mince inside the pack will remain the same, the smaller packaging volume hopes to enable consumers to use their fridge and freezer space more efficiently when storing the product at home.

“We know our customers expect us to be reducing the use of plastic across our products are and we’re constantly looking for new ways to innovate to meet our Plan for Better plastic reduction targets,” says Claire Hughes, director of Product and Innovation at Sainsbury’s. “We strive to be bold in the changes we are making, which is why we’re pleased to be the first UK retailer to vacuum pack all our beef mince range without impacting the quantity or great quality of product that our customers expect.

“This is the latest in a long line of changes we have pioneered in the space working collaboratively with our suppliers, and customers can expect much more to come from Sainsbury’s.”

Now available both in-store and online, the vacuum-packed beef mince is anticipated to bring the retailer closer to its goal of halving the use of plastic packaging in its own-brand products by 2025. A previous contribution saw Sainsbury’s repackage its own-brand coffee pod range in aluminium – a decision hoped to keep ten million pieces of plastic out of landfill every year.

Handl Tyrol has also switched its bacon packaging to Mondi’s mono-material, high-barrier vacuum-pack solution in pursuit of optimal product freshness and a circular economy for plastics.

Earlier this year, Amcor released its PrimeSeal and Dairy-Seal Recycle-Ready Thermoforming Films with memory retention technology. These solutions are expected to lower the carbon footprints of standard PA and PE films by 80% and are set to be applied to meat, fish, and dairy products.

Source:

https://packagingeurope.com/news/sainsburys-to-vacuum-pack-beef-mince-range-with-plans-to-save-450-tonnes-of-plastic-every-year

The purpose of packaging analysis is two-fold:

1. To prevent external contamination from entering the product to be ingested.

2. To avoid having the packaging become a source of contamination to people, animals, and the environment.

Packaging has become well-regulated and governmentally legislated with basic requirements that help protect consumers by ensuring the integrity and safety of ingested items. As indicated in the table, when packaging fails, serious and far-reaching problems can follow suit.

Most food packaging is multi-layered and made of laminates. Barrier layers within packaging can ensure food safety, add shelf-life, and can create an oxygen, aroma, and flavor barrier. Layered food packaging protects food, improves manufacturing operations, reduces damage and waste, enables better retail and food service storage, and more.

However, plastic packaging adds just as many layers of concern. In recent decades, it has been discovered that chemical compounds and microplastics can leach out of the packaging. As a result, scientists and government departments are collaborating to prevent leaching and other dangerous issues from occurring through the analysis of chemical structure, temperature, storage time, humidity, physical characteristics, and other factors.

• For greater depth with data points on such analyses – read this Whitepaper on analytical testing during manufacture and recycling.

Food regulation continues to improve and evolve. Researchers and regulators are actively working together to identify leachable compounds and determine acceptable levels for the safety of human health, animal health, and the environment. New threats are likely to emerge. For example, PFAS started as an environmental issue and have rapidly evolved into a food safety issue.

Learning how to better test, detect, and measure plastic packaging will surely continue to evolve, creating real-world solutions to this ongoing concern.

• Download the companion step-by-step Instrument Buyers Guide if you want to better understand which PerkinElmer instruments could best meet your testing needs.
• Watch how research is helping to advance possibilities for recyclate polymer material in PerkinElmer’s Video at JKU Johannes Kepler University – contributing to clean energy transitions and sustainability.

You can learn more about PerkinElmer laboratory solutions for polymers and packaging at https://www.perkinelmer.com/.

Source:

https://packagingeurope.com/6-ways-packaging-can-fail-and-how-to-prevent-it

When it comes to packaging design, factors such as brand identity and recognition, together with iconic shapes and custom designs, generally tops any reputable brand manager’s list. But what if all these requirements can be met by a generic packaging solution? Let’s explore the benefits of a ‘customised generic pack’.

Reducing cost without reducing quality

In addition to eliminating initial expenditure, such as investments in moulds, a generic pack is often the more cost-effective option due to economies of scale. Being produced in larger quantities, production costs are kept at bay due to fewer mould and material changes in the convertor’s factory.

Moving towards a generic design also affords smaller and well-established brands the benefits of stock security, shorter production and delivery lead times; and improved cash flow due to more frequent, smaller order volumes.

Customisation options

But the humble generic pack does not necessarily eliminate all customisation. Packaging requirements have moved beyond the days of “you can have any colour as long as it is black”. Generic packaging items can still promote brand identity and recognition by being customised, within parameters. Colour, decoration and embossing variations that drive brand differentiation is achievable and can even allow for the same packaging item to be used across diverse product categories.

Keeping EPR compliance front of mind

A generic pack can easily become the environmental star of the show, offering various benefits across the value chain. From a manufacturing perspective, the environmental cost associated with producing multiple moulds are naturally eliminated. A converter can also offer the generic item to a range of brands, allowing them to contribute to larger volumes and lower carbon footprint through more streamlined production processes. This does however mean that the converter will have the responsibility to guide the generic design to remain within the parameters of ‘designing for recyclability’ in order to achieve an optimal recycling rate. This in turn, assists the brands to also move towards full EPR compliance.

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Mpact Plastics is a leading producer of rigid plastic packaging and cling film in southern Africa. We operate out of nine production centres across the country, providing packaging from plants with relevant certifications. We service the food, beverage, personal care, home care, pharmaceutical, agricultural and retail markets. In upholding company values, and as a supporter of the circular economy, we positively contribute to industry associations, enabling various communities to participate in recycling solutions.

For more information and a comprehensive FAQ contact us on Mpact Wadeville FMCG: 011 418 6000 | info@mpactplastics.co.za | www.mpactplastics.co.za

Source:

https://www.bizcommunity.com/Article/196/178/235392.html