- Estimated 300 tonnes of waste cleared after Notting Hill Carnival; Around
300 tonnes of rubbish are estimated to have been cleared after this
year’s Carnival – the equivalent of 25 London buses. The task was
completed by 200 cleaners supported by 30 refuse trucks and sweepers,
over Monday night ready for Tuesday morning. The Council says it
recycles all it can of the collected rubbish, including composting the
waste collected from over 1000 toilet facilities. It continues that it
increased the number of food waste collections, with more than 80 stall
holders participating in the collection scheme.
- PFF Group aims to bolster recycling rates with digital watermarking technology; The
food packaging manufacturer said that its ambition is that digital
watermarks, which are imperceptible codes on the surface of packaging,
can be read at waste sorting facilities by high-resolution cameras,
resulting in more accurate sorting and detection of higher quality
recyclates.
- Survey shows 72% of respondents dispose of recyclable items in regular waste bins; Barratt
Homes says its new report reveals there is still a lot to be done to
improve the recycling system in the UK, as 71% of British people
surveyed admit to knowingly disposing of recyclable items into general
waste rather than recycling them.
- Finnish Bio-Based Innovations Could Be a Game-Changer for Plastic Packaging; Once
ranked the ‘greenest’ country in the world, Finland’s strong R&D
programs have kept the country at the forefront of innovation in
bio-based and circular solutions for materials and packaging.
- Mondi opens laboratory to test recyclability of paper-based products; Mondi
Group has announced the opening of a laboratory in Frantschach,
Austria, aimed at testing how its paper-based materials with non-paper
components such as coatings will perform in large-scale recycling mills.
- Defra warns against a “blanket zero-tolerance” approach to issuing litter penalties; The
letter, sent from former Environment Secretary Jo Churchill, cites
enforcement guidance, which advises on best practice for litter
enforcement. Ms Churchill also references “worrying” reports which
suggested some councils were using private contractors, incentivised on
the level of fines issued.
- Elopak’s tethered cap solution takes off; Following
its launch earlier this year, Elopak’s Pure-TwistFlipTM is being
adopted by brands including leading German dairy company NordseeMilch.
In this edition of the Spotlight, Elopak tells us more about the rollout
of the tethered cap solution.
- Asda to remove the best before dates on almost 250 fresh fruit and veg; Asda
has announced plans to remove the best before dates on almost 250 of
its fresh fruit and vegetable products with an aim of helping customers
to reduce food waste and save money. From 1 September, the
supermarket will remove the dates from a host of packaged fruit and
vegetable products including citrus fruits, potatoes, cauliflowers, and
carrots, across all of its UK stores.
- CMA requires Veolia to sell three businesses; The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) concluded that Veolia must sell substantial parts of the merged business:
- Suez’s UK waste management services businesses;
- Suez’s UK industrial water operation and maintenance services business; and
- Veolia’s European mobile water services business.
- Essentra Tapes launches PCR tear tape; Essentra
Tapes has launched SupaStrip PCR, a high-performance tear tape
containing at least 70% post-consumer material, designed for flexible
packaging applications.
- Start-up firm incorporates RFID tags into foodservice packs; The
company said that it has created a “complete ecosystem of technology,
using RFID tagged dishware and a smart waste bin, linked to a digital
Internet of Things (IoT) platform”. It claimed that he closed loop
re-use system would create “an entirely new way” to deal with containers
and cutlery at sporting events or music festivals.
- Omron maps out targets to reduce greenhouse gas emissions; Technology
specialist Omron is targeting a 65% reduction in direct greenhouse
gasses (GHG) from the company by 2030, having gained certification from
the Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi).
- Herma launches adhesives suitable for composting; The
62E is said to be ideal for composting, but also especially
insusceptible to migration. It has been approved for contact with dry,
moist and fatty foodstuffs. It can also be applied to fruit.
- New engineering platform takes commercial enzymatic plastic recycling a step forward; Researchers
from the Manchester Institute of Biotechnology (MIB) have developed a
new enzyme engineering platform aimed at improving plastic degrading
enzymes through directed evolution. To illustrate the utility of
their platform, they have engineered an enzyme that can successfully
degrade poly(ethylene) terephthalate (PET), the plastic commonly used in
plastic bottles. Researchers from the Manchester Institute of
Biotechnology (MIB) have developed a new enzyme engineering platform
aimed at improving plastic degrading enzymes through directed evolution.
To illustrate the utility of their platform, they have engineered an
enzyme that can successfully degrade poly(ethylene) terephthalate (PET),
the plastic commonly used in plastic bottles.
- Macfarlane revenues jump as it makes investments to tackle inflationary headwinds; Macfarlane
Group has announced a 14% increase in group revenues in the first six
months of the year, while its packaging distribution arm’s sales grew
11%.
- Tetra Pak carton recycling pilot project begins in Vietnam; Tetra
Pak says the pilot project will not only provide a recycling solution
but will also deliver additional income to around 200 informal waste
pickers. The pilot project will take place in Ho Chi Minh City
until March 2023, and Tetra Pak says for the first time, the recycling
activities are being run with the cooperation of beverage and food
manufacturers in the PRO Vietnam alliance, and a digital solution from
Circular Action, the KOLEKT App, is being used to manage carton
collection.
- Smurfit Kappa duo complete cycle ride raising money for Ukraine; Philippe
Rechoulet (from France) and José Luis Tani Stanghellini (from Italy)
set off from Gibraltar and went on to cross 10 different countries
before finishing in Nordkapp, which is the most northerly point of
Norway.
- Packaging made from “daisies, straw, grass, and cocoa shells” trialled by DS Smith; The
company is currently trialling a range of alternative fibres as part of
its £100m R&D and Innovation plan to accelerate its work in the
circular economy. DS Smith says the programme will look at the fibre
potential and plastic replacement capabilities of several materials to
diversify the range of sources it uses for packaging.
- GXO in technology push for co-packing; The
off-shoot of parent company XPO, GXO’s co-packing division has a
flagship site in East Midlands that carries out a considerable operation
for Nestlé. Mark Catley, business development director, GXO, said:
“The investments are made to improve the process, the flow of product,
and how we use systems to audit things like quality. Many sectors,
especially food, need traceability.”
- Surfers
Against Sewage "Dirty Dozen" report calls on companies to end their
harmful pollution by taking responsibility for the entire lifecycle of
their products; As part of Surfers Against Sewage Million Mile
Clean, 28,727 items were recorded overall, including both branded and
unbranded items.
- Don’t scrap EPR in the face of cost-of-living crisis, urges Ecoveritas; Ecoveritas
director Andrew McCaffery said that any attempts to water down or scrap
EPR, in the face of the cost-of-living crisis, would be
“misguided”. He was responding to the Food and Drink Federation’s
call for EPR to be dropped. Chief executive Karen Betts said that EPR
was “ill-thought out” and could add £60 to every household’s shopping
bill.
- New data shows just 992 UK businesses registered to pay new tax on plastic packaging; New
data shows that just 992 UK businesses registered to pay the new tax on
plastic packaging, which came into force on 1 April 2022, in the first
month of registrations, despite HMRC’s own estimates suggesting as many
as 20,000 businesses would be affected.
- Veolia partners with Miracle-Gro and Dobbies on bag recycling scheme; Around
100 million LDPE bags are used annually. The new scheme collects bags
and recycles them into new products including garden furniture, plastic
films and new bags. Veolia’s service has set up collection points across
81 Dobbies Garden Centres, and a selection of other garden centre
retailers, with the aim of recycling an estimated 40 million bags that
can be diverted from landfill.
- Patents for plastic recycling hit record high; A
record 2,149 patents for plastic recycling were filed last year (2021),
up 7% from 2021 and an eightfold increase since 2016, says Mathys &
Squire, the intellectual property firm.
- Dark Woods Coffee partners with Parkside on compostable packs; The
flexible packaging is made with a home-compostable bag from the
Park2Nature range and an industrially compostable valve. Dark Woods
Coffee has installed a commercial composter at its roastery as part of a
composting plan to improve the circularity of its packaging, in
addition to localised deliveries made by 100% electric van and cargo
bike. It will also provide its customers with small-scale composters or
set up links to local composting facilities where possible. The firm is
B-Corp certified.
- Carlsberg targets “ZERO packaging waste” in new ESG programme; With our new targets we support an industry transformation towards more sustainable business practices.
- Flexibles market concerned over European gas supply; Industry body Flexible Packaging Europe (FPE) has expressed concern over the potential shortage of natural gas in Europe.
- RECOUP issues warning over “material switching” trend under the guise of plastics reduction; Plastics
Recycling Charity, RECOUP has warned against the issue of materials
switching, saying in some cases this is done without consideration for
the effect on overall recyclability. It says that when packaging is
assessed in isolation rather than as part of the overall supply chain
then citizens can be “lulled into a false sense of security” regarding
recyclability and environmental sustainability claims. It says it’s
important that any claims made concerning sustainability are valid and
not ‘greenwashing’.
- Greatview snaps up Italian aseptic cartons business; Greatview
has bought the assets of Italian aseptic cartons supplier Alternapak,
as it aims to expand globally. It is the Beijing-based company’s
fifth plant globally and is Greatview’s second production facility in
Europe, alongside its site in Halle, Germany.
- £22m worth of fruit and veg wasted due to picker shortage; A
new NFU survey indicates that the 2022 fruit and vegetable harvest has
been “significantly impacted” because there aren’t enough people to pick
the crops, the NFU says. As the survey represents around a third
of the UK horticulture sector, the NFU estimates the overall value of
food wasted accumulates to more than £60 million.
- Lesters opens second warehouse after 120% sales boom; The
corrugated packaging specialist, which has recently recruited 15 new
staff, has fitted out the 25,000 sq ft facility near its headquarters in
Burntwood with flexible racking options providing enough space to store
over 2000 pallets.
- Research suggests 26% of UK adults don’t know what a DRS is; A
new poll of 2,000 adults found that, despite the deposit return
schemes’ (DRS) impact on consumers’ wallets, only 42% had heard of DRSs
and understood how they worked, whilst 26% didn’t know what they were.
- Parkside links with consortium to develop mono-material film; The
consortium aims to develop a mono-material film that offers the same
barrier performance as current multi-material packaging technology.
Joining Parkside and Bangor University in the project are Recycling
Technologies, Wells Plastics, Dunbia, Cambridge Nanomaterials
Technology, Fre-Energy, Haydale Composite Solutions, and BASF.
- Nintendo to reduce Switch packaging by 20% to combat supply issues; As
the gaming industry's increasing popularity drives up the demand for
consoles, manufacturers have struggled to keep up and are subsequently
experiencing worldwide distribution issues due to a number of factors.
We have been reporting on the semiconductor shortage for some time now,
detailing Switch assembly issues and the company's uncertainty
concerning future Switch production numbers. Now, it seems like Nintendo
is trying another tactic to reduce costs and keep up the shipment of
consoles as best it can.
- Holland & Barrett continues steady co-packing growth & invests in new lines; The
A-grade BRC certification, Soil Association accredited site has been in
operation for the retailer’s huge range of supplements since 2011 and
the extended facility now has capability to pack 24/7 dependent upon
demand, and employs 240 staff and agency colleagues.
- Suzuki begins roll-out of micro-plastic collecting device; Suzuki
Motor Corporation has started the roll-out of its “innovative” new
micro-plastic collecting device as a standard part in four of its
mid-range outboard motors. Suzuki says the DF115B, DF115BG, DF140B
and DF140BG will all now feature the micro-plastic collecting device and
will be shipped worldwide, including to major markets such as North
America and Europe.
- Investigation finds clothing waste from top fashion brands’ suppliers burnt in “toxic kilns” in Cambodia; Clothing
waste generated in Cambodia during the production of apparel and
footwear for global fashion brands, including Nike, is incinerated to
fuel brick-making, driving emissions and exposing workers to toxic
fumes, according to an investigation by Unearthed, Greenpeace’s
investigative journalism website. The investigation claims to have
found labels, footwear, fabric and garment scraps from Nike, Ralph
Lauren, Michael Kors, Reebok, Next, Diesel and Clarks at five different
kilns fuelling their fires with garment and textile waste.
- Gallus goes fully digital with new inkjet labels press; The
machine is a 340mm wide roll-to-roll UV inkjet digital inline labels
press. It can run at speeds of up to 70 metres per minute. The press is a
joint development with Heidelberg.
- Wagamama eyes plastic and carbon reduction with cPET bowls; Wagamama
has said it will remove 330 tonnes of virgin plastic from its annual
supply chain by switching its delivery bowls to crystallised PET (cPET).
- UK Government announces new funding to remove chewing gum stains from high streets; New
Government action to crack down on litter on UK high streets has been
set out, with more than 40 councils across the UK awarded grants of up
to £70,000 to remove chewing gum stains. The Government says that
the Chewing Gum Task Force grant scheme will help councils clean up UK
towns and cities.
Exeter, Birmingham, Sunderland, Swansea, Glasgow, and Belfast are among
the first winners of funding as part of the Government’s new Chewing
Gum Task Force, which the Government says will help to reinvigorate the
country’s towns and cities by funding efforts to clean up streets.
- Pallet and packaging association calls for industry action to attract staff; The
European Federation of Wooden Pallet & Packaging Manufacturers
(FEFPEB) has called on the sector to update its businesses and
communication to ensure it can attract and retain high quality staff for
the future. Rob van Hoesel, president, said the industry must
adapt its operations to provide rewarding careers and personal
development, and communicate its strong ethical characteristics to
potential employees, to give it an advantage in an increasingly
competition jobs environment for companies.
- Confederation of Paper Industries “disappointed” in BBC article; The
Confederation of Paper Industries (CPI) says it is disappointed that a
recent BBC news item on the carbon impact of paper failed to “give the
full picture”. The CPI says that a recent BBC article which
presented the de-inking of paper as being novel was “disappointing”. The
CPI says that the method shown may be innovative, but industrial scale
de-inking has been a fact of life for the commercial recycling of
newsprint and office paper for many decades.
- Smart and sustainable: Can packaging be both? How
connected are sustainability and smart packaging, and what does the
future hold for partnerships between these two fields? Andrew Manly,
AIPIA’s communications director, looks into this in our latest comment
piece.
- Fenton targets cost reduction with bag-in-box containers; Fenton
Packaging Solutions sales development director Chris Warren said:
“Prior to filling, BiB saves up to 40% in warehouse capacity and takes
up 90% less transport space, when compared to rigid alternatives. In
addition, BiB creates 60% less non-recyclable waste.
- TFR Group invests in mattress collection and recycling service; Commercial
mattress recycling and “circular economy specialist” The Furniture
Recycling Group (TFR Group) says it is tackling the mattress waste
problem by investing in the launch of a new mattress collection and
recycling service. TFR Group says that after doubling its turnover
and staff in the last four years it is on a further growth drive,
expanding its extensive service areas with a mattress collection service
that will be available in Preston, Stoke, Cumbria, Lancashire, Greater
Manchester, Liverpool, and Leeds.
- Constantia Flexibles targets growth with acquisition of FFP Packaging Solutions; The
deal for an undisclosed sum, is the first consumer plant for Constantia
in the UK. FFP operates in flexible packaging and offers flow wraps,
lidding films and pre-made pouches. The Northampton-based firm has a
workforce of over 100.
- PUMA announces “first of its kind” sustainable fashion conference; Live
from London and available to stream around the world, Puma says
Conference of the People will place the voices of Gen Z front and centre
so that those most impacted by today’s climate decisions can influence
those making them. Actress, model and activist Cara Delevingne will
host Conference of the People, powered by PUMA, alongside PUMA CEO
Bjørn Gulden, and PUMA CSO Anne-Laure Descours.
- Japanese beauty brand works with James Cropper on Ulé packs; Paper maker James Cropper has supplied its FibreBlend Upcycled technology for Japanese beauty brand Shiseido.
- Budweiser celebrates Euro 2022 win with limited edition can; The
‘Home’ 440ml has been rebranded to celebrate the Lionesses’ victory in
the tournament. Budweiser’s red can has been reimagined to celebrate the
England flag in red and white, with the three lions taking centre
stage. The brand’s creed, running across the top of the can, has also
been updated as an ode to the England squad.
- UK laundry industry responsible for almost 11,000 tonnes of plastic packaging every year; New
research has found annual production of plastic laundry packs has hit
approximately 10,791 tonnes per year despite environmental pledges by
the UK’s biggest brands to cut back.The findings from eco-effective
cleaning brand, smol, reveal that approximately 109 million plastic
laundry packs were sold in 2021 – leading to claims of greenwashing from
laundry’s biggest brands, which smol says are relying on ineffective
recycling to tackle the issue. With an annual average of 270
household washes, this puts pressure on consumers to tackle the issue
when they dispose of the packaging at home.
- Graphic Packaging partners with Coca-Cola bottler to launch KeelClip in US; The
equipment – the first to be installed in the US following a successful
expansion throughout Europe – is a paper alternative for drinks cans,
using fibre-based packaging for can multipacks, eliminating the need for
plastic rings and shrink wrap. KeelClip also offers protects the
can tops, and features easy-remove cans and finger holes for ergonomic
carrying. The company said the assembly process also enables cans
to be oriented for optimal brand presence.
- Itsu switches to Greiner packs for instant noodles; The
K3 packs feature a lightweight PP plastic cup wrapped in a removable
cardboard sleeve which features a patented tear-tab so that consumers
can easily and intuitively separate the materials to enable recycling.
- TIPA & Aquapak announce collaboration on research-led packaging material; The
two companies are working on research-led material where there are
currently no workable alternatives – the newest solution coming up is a
high barrier and PVDC-free compostable film for packaging.
- Tesa launches recycled PET packaging tape; Used
PET products including bottles have been recycled and used as a raw
material for the tape – 70% of the polyethylene (PET) that makes up the
backing comes from post-consumer recycling (PCR).
- Research claims consumers are focused on upscaling packaging; Research
by British Glass has found that a big majority of Brits (85%) want less
plastic in their house and are instead moving towards using reusing and
upcycling more often.
- Parkside creates flexible paper packs for Iceland frozen seafood range; The
retailer’s Northcoast range of frozen seafood will incorporate flexible
paper packaging and is said to be one of the first successful
applications for the material in frozen food. Iceland’s Northcoast
products were previously packed in an LDPE and are now in a recyclable
paper pouch.
- WasteAid project boosted by funding from WRAP and UKRI; Through
the funding, WasteAid is pioneering a feasibility study on developing a
circular economy alongside partners The University of Portsmouth and
The Department of Agriculture Rural Development Land and Environmental
Affairs (DARDLEA), in Mpumalanga, South Africa.
- VoidFill Packaging tackles paper and air packs with ‘EcoNutz’; VoidFill
Packaging is marketing its on-site machine that manufactures EcoNutz –
‘peanuts’ made from paper, replacing polystyrene chips and other
petro-chemical foams and plastics, to cut environmental impact.
- Oli-Tec smart labels target pack converters and retailers; Oli-Tec
has now developed a new smart label technology for products that are
temperature as well as time sensitive. The smart labels can be
applied to any product with a shelf life of between five and 15 days.
They an integrated visual indicator that is sensitive to time and
temperature. It gradually transitions from yellow to red, changing more
slowly in cool temperatures and more quickly in warm conditions—both at
predictable, repeatable rates.
- Single-use ban will create problems for business, warns FPA; Defra
Minister Steve Double has signed off the Scottish exemption to the
Internal Market Act in enabling it to enforce its single use plastic
ban. The ban comes into effect on 12 August. The FPA said that
Scottish businesses can’t move stock on, such as plastic cutlery,
plates, straws and beverage stirrers. The association added that these
products can’t be given to charities, for example to help feed the
homeless or refugees in camps on the Ukraine boarder.
- Transcend and Zume in €90m deal to upscale moulded fibre packaging; Zume,
the moulded fibre manufacturing system specialist and provider of
compostable packaging, said it was confident the deal can reduce the
amount of single-use plastic that enters landfill annually.
- Over half of UK shoppers feel “guilty” about buying from businesses that aren’t sustainable; New
research from eBay UK suggests shopping “with a conscience” is high on
consumers’ agenda in spite of the cost of living crisis. Over half
of UK shoppers feel guilty when they spend money on products that aren’t
from a sustainable or ethical brand, according to new research from
eBay for Change. The research suggests two thirds of shoppers (65%)
stop to think about sustainability before making a purchase while over
half (57%) consider first if a business “gives back to society”.
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