Some studies on food waste estimate that two-thirds of food waste could be avoided if food quality could be evaluated. Naficy's 3D-printed electrical gas sensors are designed to be printed on flexible substrates that can then be transferred on to the packaging film prior to the packaging process.

“Our vision is to enable inkjet or 3D printing of such sensors to make them easily translatable for the high throughput packaging industry,” said Naficy. “Specifically designed inks will be provided to the manufacturers to perform the 3D inkjet printing of the sensors. This could be performed either by the packaging companies or by a third party.”

Naficy and his team mainly focus on electrical sensors as the information can be recorded without the need to visually inspect the food, as the electrical properties of the active sensor components will change with various chemicals (e.g. ammonia, carbon dioxide, fatty acids) that are produced during food spoilage.

“The change in electrical properties of the active components of sensors will be detected wirelessly. Therefore, the user is able to monitor how the state of packaged food is changing over time,” he explained. “Through this approach, anybody along the food supply chain should be able to know exactly what the state of food is, to assist better decision making.”

“For instance, the retailer knows which food is getting closer to go off so they can place them on display regardless of what the expiry date says. Or the distributors know that their stock is going off faster or slower than expected.”

Naficy says the main obstacle to overcome is integrating the sensors in very small electrical tags and so remain in the development stage for now. “That being said, we have made great progress in designing the materials and engineering them to become 3D printable,” he added.

For the first time Recycling Dual guarantees to close the full loop for paper-based packaging for its customers. The service provides them with a holistic solution to ensure packaging from their products is recycled through a nationwide collection system.

From 2021, Recycling Dual will be the only company in the market with the ability to track the life cycle of paper, cardboard and carton packaging from production through to being recycled.

The company was set up in response to a federal law which was enacted last year requiring stricter recycling requirements for all manufacturers and retailers who use consumer packaging as part of their supply chain, especially for e-commerce companies with e-commerce packaging. The law requires businesses to buy licences for the packaging they use, and with costs expected to increase by up to 30% in 2021, this has led to a greater responsibility being placed on businesses to increase their recycling rates. Additionally, failure to comply can result in significant fines.

Recycling Dual organises the collection, sorting and recycling of sales packaging for businesses across Germany ensuring strict recycling quotas are met. As part of the service, Recycling Dual works in collaboration with numerous stakeholders including local municipalities and waste management companies.

Commenting on the service, Henri Vermeulen, Vice President of Smurfit Kappa Recovered Paper said: “We are delighted to provide this first to market service to our customers in Germany. Recycling Dual provides a cost effective solution for our customers which boosts recycling rates and meets a specific business need.”

“The integrated system combines Smurfit Kappa’s expertise in paper, packaging and long-term experience in the recycling industry and delivers on our solution focused approach to assisting our customers”, added Heiner Oepen, Managing Director Recycling Dual.

Through Smurfit Kappa’s integrated bundle of paper production, individual development of paper-based packaging solutions, complex logistics offering and its wider partnerships, Recycling Dual can act as a ‘one stop shop’ in the Company’s full service offering.

The new same day and self-seal Salad Packs now feature an over-the-edge window, creating excellent visibility from the front and top and when stacked in a chiller display. A ‘push-tuck’ closing mechanism promotes secure sealing, which aids ease of closing and opening as consumers can either unlock or tear off the top.

New to the Chilled Food-to-Go range is the Salad Bowl, a unique, distinctive addition which sits between the medium and large standard salad packs. With a volume of 900ml, the Salad Bowl has been designed to sit in the palm of a consumer’s hand, making it ideal for on-the-go consumption.

The redesign and relaunch of the Chilled Food-to-Go range, which comes in different designs and boards for all fillings, provides a wealth of options for any retailer. Bespoke design options are also available across the range to maximise on shelf and brand impact.

“As a leader in the design of food packaging solutions, it is vital that we keep our finger on the pulse of what is shaping the market, and the challenges our customers are facing. It is also essential that we continue to seek out sustainable alternatives within a market which has been dominated by single use plastic.” explains Colpac’s Head of Marketing & Product Kate Berry. “The re-design of the Chilled Food-to-Go range is testament to the creative capabilities of our design team, and our knowledge and experience of manufacturing food to go product solutions.”

Colgate delivered to retailers the first tube recognized by the Association of Plastic Recyclers (APR) -- Antiplaque & Whitening toothpaste under the Company’s Tom’s of Maine brand. Tom’s will complete the switch in 2020, when the Colgate brand will start the transition in Europe and North America. By 2025, the Company will complete needed modifications to tube-making equipment at more than a dozen of its facilities around the world.

Now, Colgate is sharing its innovative technology with competitors as part of its campaign to transform one of the most widely used forms of plastic packaging that until now could not be recycled.

“Colgate wants to make tubes a part of the circular economy by keeping this plastic productive and eliminating waste,” said Noel Wallace, Chief Executive Officer and President of Colgate-Palmolive. “This advancement can make a significant difference in the marketplace today as we test new packaging materials, product formats and refillable models to reduce our use of plastic.”

“If we can standardize recyclable tubes among all companies, we all win. We want all toothpaste tubes -- and eventually all kinds of tubes -- to meet the same third-party recycling standards that we’ve achieved. We can align on these common standards for tubes and still compete with what’s inside them.”

In addition to sharing details of its technology, including information subject to Colgate patent applications filed in the U.S. and globally, Colgate has engaged with packaging and recycling stakeholders -- including end consumers -- to build awareness and acceptance of the “ready-to-recycle” tube. And Colgate engineers are already sharing the Company’s plans at key packaging forums and other industry meetings.

Mr. Wallace said the decision to freely share the tube technology aligns with the Company’s values and sustainability goals. It also contributes to its ongoing work supporting the UN Sustainable Development Goals and the Ellen MacArthur Foundation’s New Plastics Economy Global Commitment. The Foundation’s mission is to accelerate the transition to a circular economy.

“In a new plastics economy, plastic never becomes waste or pollution. To achieve this vision, we must eliminate all problematic and unnecessary plastic items, innovate to ensure that the plastics we do need are reusable, recyclable, or compostable, and circulate all the plastic items we use to keep them in the economy and out of the environment,” said Sander Defruyt, New Plastics Economy Lead at the Ellen MacArthur Foundation.“It is encouraging to see Colgate innovate not only to replace today's non-recyclable toothpaste tubes, but also open source this solution to facilitate toothpaste tube recycling around the world.”

Most of today’s toothpaste tubes are made from sheets of plastic laminate – usually a combination of different plastics – often sandwiched around a thin layer of aluminum. The mix of materials makes it impossible to recycle through conventional methods.

To make its recyclable tube, Colgate chose High Density Polyethylene (HDPE), the “No. 2” plastic used to make milk jugs and other plastic bottles. Chosen because it is already widely recycled, HDPE had been thought to be too rigid to make a squeezable tube. Colgate engineers figured out how to combine different grades and thicknesses of HDPE laminate into a tube that meets recycling standards, protects the product and holds up to the demands of high-speed production, all while remaining comfortably squeezable.

To earn APR recognition, the Company also had to demonstrate that the tube material could be reused to make new plastic bottles and would successfully navigate the screens and conveyor belts used to sort recyclables. The tube -- from invention through APR recognition in June -- was developed over more than five years. The Company is currently seeking similar recognition from Plastic Recyclers Europe.

Colgate’s pioneering work with APR, which sets recyclability standards for North America, has already made a difference. Colgate proposed the idea of a recyclable HDPE tube and worked with the organization to ensure alignment with its standards and tests. Recently, making use of the testing standards established by Colgate, one major tube maker, Essel Propack, earned APR recognition, and another, Albéa, is working towards recognition.

L’Oréal and Corbios formed the joint venture in 2017. In the meantime, following companies have expressed their support: Nestlé Waters, PepsiCo et Suntory Beverage & Food Europe.

The funding will enable Carbios to finance a pilot plant for the recycling of plastics and polyesters fibres into PET plastics which will be the first step towards the industrialisation of this enzymatic PET recycling technology.

This technology uses specific enzymes that recycle used plastics into (recycled) PET that is of similar quality as virgin PET.

"By 2025, 100 % of our packaging will be recycled, recyclable or compostable and 50 % of our packaging will be made from used plastics or bio-based” said Barbara Lavernos, General Director of Technologies and Operations at l’Oréal.

The Holy Grail 2.0 initiative has the goal of assessing whether digital technology can enable better sorting and higher-quality recycling rates for packaging in the EU. Today, more than 85 partners across the value chain are working together to refine and commercialize this concept.

“At Sonoco we recognize the critical importance of developing sustainable packaging solutions that will protect and preserve our planet for future generations,” said Jeff Schuetz, Staff Vice President, Consumer Technology, at Sonoco. “Sonoco has been engaged in sustainability efforts almost as early as our founding. We are one of the few companies in our industry with a recycling business, and we are highly focused on creating more sustainable packaging as evidenced by the introduction of our EnviroSense® line, packaging with tomorrow in mind™. Our EnviroSense portfolio focuses on attributes such as reduced environmental impact, optimized package-to-product ratio, increased use of recycled content, recyclability, responsible fiber sourcing, compostability, and the use of bio-based materials. And now we are proud to be a member of the Holy Grail 2.0 initiative, where we can help advance sortation and recycling of packaging of all types.”

Imperceptible postage stamp sized watermarks on packaging aim to make it possible to effectively sort the material into specific waste streams. Conventional sorting technologies are not able to reliably identify multi-material packaging, so they can end up as contaminants in mono-material recycling streams. With this new digital watermarking technology, it might become possible to separate materials more accurately, which can then be recycled with enhanced technologies. Digital watermarks also provide other opportunities. For example, consumers can use a smartphone app to find details about packaging and how to recycle it, and brand owners can add product details to a package.

Batavia Mills and Tuscanne Brands, private label brands for St. Charles Trading Inc., are now transitioning over to new packaging using their recently updated branding.

Batavia Mills and Tuscanne Brands have implemented new branding on packaging for the warehouse and sample program. Customers and prospects will be seeing the updated logos in many places, from gusseted pouches to security tape.

The marketing team takes pride in the new product boxes which are designed to complete a design when palletized. The updated sample pouches bring a retail type aesthetic to the sample experience and include a QR code for easy reordering of samples.

This new branding will continue to bring brand awareness to the company and give consistency across different mediums.

"The rebranded packaging of St Charles Trading, Inc's private label brands will bring our global brand together in a way that visually supports the mission of the company. Updated packaging showcases our unique perspective on the future of our market segment. We designed the packaging with an eye towards customer service while offering the best ingredients possible in the marketplace to support the manufacturer and their end consumers ever changing needs. This is a very exciting time for our company to bring it all together so that the brand matches our Corporate HQ, as well as the new goals and objectives of our CEO to be a leader in innovation and service." Jennifer Manns, Executive Vice President

Almost all of our laminate and plastic tube offerings can be customized to have this special luminous property, irrespective of diameter width and tube size. These tubes are particularly useful for clients in categories such as Beauty & Cosmetics, Pharma & Health, and Oral Care, and more so when unique packaging appeal is needed.

Glow in the Dark tubes are unique, instantly recognizable, and have high shelf appeal – perfect for when you need to make your packaging solution stand out versus the competitive set.