By Carol Zweep
When it comes to the circular economy of plastics, innovative solutions continue to be introduced to the market. These options offer alternatives to traditional plastics, reducing landfill waste and impacts on the environment.
Edible and biodegradable packaging: Some packaging materials are safe for consumption and can replace items such as single-use plastic beverage bottles, cups, and condiment sachets. Ooho, a material made from brown seaweed, is one such material that is also a renewable natural resource.
Produce packaging replacement: Plant-derived coatings such as Apeel can be used in place of plastic packaging such as shrink-wrap on fruit and vegetables. This coating slows water loss and oxidation, extending the shelf-life of produce without plastic.
Take-out containers: Companies such as Friendlier are designing polypropylene takeout containers that can be returned after use to collection bins. Once returned, the container is washed, sanitized, and redistributed in a closed-loop system. Then, at the end of its life, the container can be recycled.
Meat trays: A package converter, Klockner Pentaplast, has developed an unique design for a polyethylene terephthalate (PET) tray that retains and reroutes liquid away from meat at any angle. By eliminating the absorbent pad typically seen in meat packaging, this product improves quality while also increasing clear product visibility. In addition, the tray contains recycled content and is recyclable.
Compostable options: Single-use coffee pods can be wasteful. Nabob and Maxwell House recently developed a zero-waste solution where all of the pod components – the lids, rings, filter, and used coffee grounds – are compostable. The pods have demonstrated successful breakdown in real-world testing in a variety of composting conditions and processes. The pod bags and cartons are also recyclable, offering a new alternative to consumers.
Recycling rate improvements: Innovations such as digital watermarking technology enable higher sorting and recycling capture rates for packaging while reducing waste. Digimarc technology modifies the pixels of the packaging to carry an imperceptible code undetectable to the consumer. The code is picked up by cameras, such as on the sorting line of a waste management facility, and then the packaging is sorted into the recycling section. Proctor & Gamble is currently using Digimarc for its Lenor Fabric Softener, but the technology is being piloted in other packaging as well.
Food-Grade Recycled Plastic: Post-consumer PET is being used by companies such as Ice River, taking materials from used bottles and thermoform clamshell packaging to make new food containers and water bottles. Once collected from municipal recycling facilities in Canada and the Northern U.S., the material, which is often contaminated, undergoes a rigorous purification process before being recycled into food-grade recycled plastic.
Hard-to-Recycle Plastics: Even hard-to-recycle plastics are being repurposed to reduce waste. For example, Firstar Fiber Corporation is transforming such plastics into plastic lumber, a value-added product used in decking and furniture. CRDC Global is also applying scale solutions to the conversion of hard-to-recycle plastic into a concrete additive in building and construction.
As companies look to meet the demands of a circular economy of plastics, more innovative solutions are on the horizon. In the future, we can expect to see even more creativity and applications for alternatives to traditional plastics in food packaging.
Carol Zweep is manager of Consulting and Technical Services for NSF Canada. Contact her at czweep@nsf.org.
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