Page 62 - Plastics News April 2024

PRODUCT NEWS

Supply Chain Partners Collaborate to Launch New Premium Film
Packaging Made with 50% Recycled Plastic

he new packaging was launched in to traditional fossil feedstock to first party who certify that it has been
Tthe UK and Ireland for Sunbites, produce recycled propylene, before tracked through the production pro-
PepsiCo’s well-known snack brand, in turning this into virgin-quality recy- cess using mass balance principles and
late 2023. The packaging is made by cled polypropylene resin at the plant that the claim being made is accurate.
recycling plastic waste into food grade in Lavera, France. The upcoming EU Packaging and
packaging material. This is done using IRPLAST uses the new resin to turn Packaging Waste Regulation (PPWR)
an advanced recycling process, a com- existing plastic packaging designs into is expected to set out ambitious tar-
plementary approach to mechanical new packaging films that contain 50% gets for recycling packaging waste
recycling, which enables the recycled of post-consumer recycled materials for 2025 and 2030 across a range of
materials to satisfy the demanding EU and meet the food contact perfor- materials and recycled content tar-
regulatory requirements for applica- mance requirements. gets for plastics. The achievement
tions such as food contact packaging, Amcor transformed these films into demonstrates that advanced recycling
contact sensitive and medical devices. printed packaging that delivers the technologies can play a critical role in
Brands and retailers use flexible film same technical performance for Pep- meeting the growing demand for the
packaging to ensure food maintains its siCo. safe, circular use of recycled materi-
freshness and prevent food waste. Using these new polypropylene films, als in food contact products, helping
Several partners across the entire PepsiCo launched the Sunbites pack- the EU to achieve its 10% recycled
supply chain collaborated to enable aging in the UK. The partnership is content objective for contact sensitive
the launch of this attractive new cir- part of PepsiCo Positive (pep+), the plastic packaging by 2030.
cular packaging: company’s end-to-end transforma- As well as preventing plastic from
GreenDot ensured the procurement tion, which aims to eliminate virgin ending up in the environment and
and supply of post-consumer plastic fossil-based plastic in crisp and chip reducing the use of fossil based raw
packaging waste, which was convert- bags in Europe by 2030. materials, the circular re-use of ‘end
ed into TACOIL™ (pyrolysis oil) using The recycled polymer content is cer- of life’ plastic can also help to reduce
Plastic Energy’s technology. tified under the International Sustain- total emissions.s
INEOS Olefins & Polymers Europe ability and Carbon Certification (ISCC
used this pyrolysis oil as an alternative PLUS) scheme, an independent third

New insights on behaviour of different plastic types in extreme

conditions

he study showed conventional
Tplastic broke down into smaller
microplastics than plant-based plastic.
New research led by researchers
from the University of Portsmouth in
the UK and Belgium’s Flanders Marine
Institute has provided insights into the
behaviour of various types of plastics.
The researchers studied the decom-
position process of two plastic types
in extreme conditions.
The study found that biobased plastic

64 PLASTICS NEWS April 2024