Sustainability

Aiming to produce environmentally friendly alternatives to plastic food wrap and containers, a Rutgers scientist has developed a biodegradable, plant-based coating that can be sprayed on foods, guarding against pathogenic and spoilage microorganisms and transportation damage.

The scalable process could potentially reduce the adverse environmental impact of plastic food packaging as well as protect human health.

In 2020, Incapto was born with the purpose of revolutionizing the coffee industry with the aim of moving towards a better and more sustainable market, being an alternative to coffee in capsules with the aim of changing the consumption habits of today's consumers. HP Indigo digital printing has become Incapto's strategic partner to produce its flexible packaging and corrugated shipping cases to accelerate their sustainability innovation journey while strengthening their brand equity.

International beauty packaging manufacturer and provider Quadpack and Aptar Beauty + Home, worldwide leader in the design and manufacturing of beauty dispensing solutions, have jointly developed a refillable lipstick which pushes the boundaries of sustainability and sensory appeal in makeup packaging. In a spirit of collaborative innovation, the two companies have blended their respective expertise in wood and stick mechanisms to create a product that delivers a great consumer experience: the Iconic Woodacity® Lipstick.

 NOVA Chemicals Corporation (“NOVA Chemicals”) is introducing new resin technology for machine direction oriented (MDO) and biaxially oriented (BO) processes to help its customers and brand owners meet their sustainability goals. NOVA Chemicals’ innovative technology marks a major advancement in the pursuit of a plastics circular economy, as it enables recyclable all-polyethylene (PE) packaging.

Cascades is improving its line of northbox® isothermal packaging solutions by adding innovative technology: northbox® XTEND™. The composition of this meal box creates a moisture barrier that helps keep the insulation rigid. The packaging keeps food fresh during long transit times and in regions with higher temperatures, and requires less ice. Designed with the circular economy in mind, this packaging solution is made of recycled cardboard and was determined to be recyclable by an external laboratory and prequalified by How2Recycle.

The film forms the basis to produce sustainable floatable shrink sleeves, which facilitates easy separation of labels from PET, HDPE and PP bottles and containers in the recycling process to allow bottle-to-bottle circularity.

"The new capacities will allow us to supply label and sleeve converters with high-quality floatable shrink sleeve material that has the potential to revolutionize the market and the way packaging is decorated to move towards more sustainable choices," says Simon Huber, managing director, Innovia UK and Poland.

The new packaging contains up to 70% less plastic than Chrysal's blue containers and now also comes in a 10L size. Not only is the new packaging ecologically friendly, it is also more user-friendly. The new 10L size Bag-in-Box is easy to separate and easy to dispose of; just press the plastic can together and put the carton in the paper bin.