Sustainability Times Newsletter

Volume 3, No. 6

November/December 2009

Sustainable Efforts

Coca-Cola broadens use of PlantBottle

The global introduction of the PlantBottle, a polyethylene terephthalate (PET) container derived partly from plant-based feedstock, will include the 2010 Olympic Winter Games in Vancouver, BC, Canada. The recyclable container, developed by Coca-Cola Co., Atlanta, GA, will be filled with Dasani water or Coca-Cola brand carbonated soft drinks including Sprite and Fresca.

“Our PlantBottle will be in the spotlight for the Olympic Games, introducing this innovative packaging to a global audience,” says Nikos Koumettis, president Coca-Cola Canada, which also will collect PET bottles emptied at all Olympic venues and hopes to divert 95% from landfills.

Coca Cola PlantBottle Packaging Coca-Cola is sourcing raw materials for its PlantBottle from suppliers in Brazil. The PlantBottle packaging currently is made through a process that turns sugar cane and molasses, a byproduct of sugar production, into a key component for PET. The sugar cane comes from predominantly rain-fed crops that were processed into ethanol instead of sugar. The result is a container with up to 30% plant-based content and possibly recycled content as well. Eventually, Coca-Cola plans to use other types of plant-based waste such as wood chips or wheat stalks and achieve 100% plant-based content.

“At WWF [World Wildlife Fund], we applaud Coca-Cola’s efforts to ensure that sourcing the raw materials for PlantBottle does not impact the food supply,” says Gerry Butts, president of WWF-Canada, Toronto, ON, noting, “We cannot trade off climate protection for food shortages, and innovations such as the PlantBottle packaging show that we don’t have to.”

Canadian products available in the new plant-based bottle will be filled at Coca-Cola Bottling Co. facilities in Calgary, Alberta, and Richmond, British Columbia. The global launch of PlantBottle also includes distribution of 500-milliliter and 2-liter containers with 15% plant-based content and 50% recycled content for Coca-Cola, Coca-Cola Light and Coca-Cola Zero in Denmark and several sizes of Dasani water and 2-liter Coca-Cola in selected U.S. markets including Seattle, WA; and San Francisco and Los Angeles, CA. The 2010 PlantBottle launch also will include Japan and Mexico plus the Shanghai (China) Expo and is expected to reach 2 billion bottles by the end of 2010.

Household cleaners transition to refillables

RPC Llantrisant Customized Neck Finish on Standard Preform A refillable trigger-sprayer bottle cuts waste and production expenses for Aquo kitchen, bathroom or glass cleaners from Kilrock Products Ltd., Chesham, UK.

The reusable, 750-milliliter, polyethylene terephthalate container made with 30% post-consumer-recycled content by a UK,-based molder is designed to be reused 20 times. It ships unfilled to reduce costs and greenhouse gas emissions associated with transportation.

Active ingredients are contained in a water-soluble pouch. Two pouches ship with each bottle. At point-of-use, the consumer simply drops one pouch of cleaner into the bottle, fills it with warm water, replaces the trigger sprayer and shakes the container to dissolve the concentrate.

HBA maker sets up refill/recycle program

Natural Magic Eco-Herbal Skin Care products from Natural Magic, San Mateo, CA, feature natural and organic ingredients and recyclable polyethylene terephthalate (PET) or glass packaging.

An Eco-Friendly Refill-Recycle Program for glass jars encourages consumers who purchase products online to return the empty containers for refill and receive 20% off that purchase plus free shipping. It’s also possible to visit local affiliates to obtain a refill and the 20% discount. Returned jars are autoclaved, refilled and labeled before being shipped back to the consumer.

Natural Magic Founder/Owner Yvette Dellanini Ward predicts the glass jars can make several trips, but admits no hard data exists yet because the Refill-Recycle Program, which started late in the summer of 2009, has only been underway a couple months and is still being fine-tuned. Products in glass containers account for about 70% of the company’s business with the remaining 30% in PET, which was chosen for its recyclability.

Protective packaging improves sustainability profile

CareNSol protective packaging from ADE Inc., Chicago, IL, suspends wine bottles and other fragile products in a water-soluble film “hammock” attached to a corrugated support cradle, which contains at least 20% post-consumer-recycled content.

The patented and patent-pending CareNSol pack protects the contents from shock, vibration and surface abrasion. After use, the biodegradable pack can be reused or recycled in the corrugated waste stream. The printable film from MonoSol LLC, Merrillville, IN, dissolves in the corrugated recycling process and replaces the polyurethane or polyethylene film typically used in suspension packaging. Available in standard and custom sizes, the CareNSol pack folds flat to occupy minimal space during shipping and storage. Corrugated cradles and shippers adjust so one size fits a range of products.

An in-house lab, certified by the International Safe Transit Association, East Lansing, MI, confirms designs protect the contents adequately throughout the supply chain. For more information, visit www.ade-usa.com/PDF/CareNSol%20Brochure.pdf, www.monosol.com.

PSTV features sustainability conference presentations

Videos of portions of the Sustainable Packaging Forum, sponsored by Packaging Strategies, West Chester, PA, in September 2009, can be viewed on PSTV at www.packstrat.com.

Options include the keynote address, “Dial”-ing in a World-Class Sustainability Strategy by Bradley Casper, president and chief executive officer of Henkel’s Dial Corp., Scottsdale, AZ.

Other videos include a brand owner panel, Tying Sustainability to Bottom Line Economic Strategies, and presentations by Victor Bell, president, Environmental Packaging International, Jamestown, RI, and Edna Conway, senior director, Advanced Compliance & Social Responsibility, Cisco Systems, Inc., San Jose, CA. Bell provides advice about accurate green claims and requirements of retailers and the Federal Trade Commission, Washington, DC, while Conway talks about Moving Toward a Sustainable Packaging Model: Implications for Value Chain Collaboration.

Kit presents sustainable labeling options

Sustainable Labeling Options Kit from Fort Dearborn, Elk Grove, IL, discusses alternatives and presents sustainable label substrates and downgauged examples. Request a copy at www.fortdearborn.com/portal_fortdearborn.com/LoadMenuItem.do?page=/html/wbrochure/about/sustainability.htm.

Event: Sustainability in Packaging 2010 Conference

IntertechPira, Portland, ME, will hold its Sustainability in Packaging 2010 Conference and Exhibit, March 15-17, 2010, at the Rosen Plaza Hotel in Orlando, FL. For more information, visit www.sustainability-in-packaging.com.

Source Reduction

Nestle Waters lightweights Eco-Shape bottle

One of the lighter polyethylene terephthalate (PET) bottles on the market has lost more weight with the introduction of the second generation Eco-Shape bottle by Nestle Waters North America, Greenwich, CT. Weighing 9.3 grams on average, the second-generation Eco-Shape bottle contains 25% less PET than its predecessor introduced in 2007 and 60% less than the company’s, pre-Eco-Shape container, which debuted in the mid-1990s.

The new bottles also feature a cap weighing only 1 gram. In addition, the company has eliminated corrugated side walls from the majority of its 24-packs of bottled water, its number-one seller.

“The second-generation Eco-Shape bottle is our gold standard for lightweighting, and is among the lightest half-liter plastic bottles available in the marketplace today,” says Andrius Dapkus, director of innovations and renovations at Nestle Waters North America, adding, “We’ve reduced our use of plastic resin by 80 million pounds annually, while also making sure the bottle is durable and appealing for consumers.” The new design helps Nestle Waters exceed its 2008 goal of lightweighting its half-liter, single-serve bottles an additional 15% by 2010.

The lighter half-liter design is rolling out with Poland Spring® Arrowhead® and Nestle® Pure Life® brands and will be extended to regional brands such as Deer Park®, Ice Mountain®, Ozarka® and Zephyrhills® in spring 2010. By the end of 2010, other sizes will move into the lighter, next-generation design. Since its launch in April 2007, the Eco-Shape bottle is credited with reducing carbon emission equivalents by more than 356,000 tons – the equivalent of removing 78,000 cars from the road.

In other sustainability initiatives, the company now operates seven bottling facilities that meet the U.S. Green Building Council’s Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) standards and has adopted hydrogen fuel cell forklifts and hybrid trucks. In addition, it is working with nonprofits, legislators and communities to boost plastic bottle recycling rates in America from less than 30% in 2008 to 60% by 2018. By 2020, it plans to introduce a next-generation bottle made entirely from recycled materials or renewable resources.

Short-skirt closure designs proliferate

Bericap, Budenheim, Germany, adds LinerSeal SuperShorty to its DoubleSeal SuperShorty closure range with the short-skirt PCO 1881 neck finish. Already well established for carbonated beverages and still water in Europe, Teinacher - the Americas and Asia, the PCO 1881 finish makes it possible to reduce container/closure weight up to 30%. The two-piece LinerSeal SuperShorty closure is made of polypropylene and features a free rotating liner of ethylene vinyl acetate. With performance similar to two-piece PCO 1810 closures, the LinerSeal SuperShorty closure is particularly well-suited for under-the-cap promotions and applications requiring a transparent appearance.

Bericap’s family of PCO 1881 closures now includes the one-piece DoubleSeal SuperShorty in various weights and the two-piece LinerSeal SuperShorty plus two- and three-piece sports cap variants. All screw caps can be equipped with oxygen scavengers.

LDPE resin permits lightweighting

LDPE with low leachables/extractables Purell PE 3420F low-density polyethylene (LDPE), additive-free production resin from LyondellBasell Industries, Rotterdam, The Netherlands, combines easy processability and best-in-class mechanical properties with low leachables/extractables.

Well-suited for pharmaceutical packaging, Purell PE 3420F LDPE exhibits a higher density of 0.933 gram per cubic centimeter and withstands higher sterilization temperatures, thereby offering the potential for significantly thinner walls, substantially shorter sterilization cycles and cost savings for blow-fill-seal containers such as infusion bottles. The resin also provides a high water vapor barrier. A high melt flow rate improves its capabilities for being embossed.

Recycling/Recycled Content

Recycling rates trend upward

Recycling rates are rising for a number of packaging materials, including polyethylene terephthalate (PET). The 2008 Report on Postconsumer PET Container Recycling Activity states the PET recycling rate rose to 27% in 2008, its highest level in more than a decade and a 9.8% increase over 2007’s 24.6% rate. The amount of bottles collected also set a record at 1.45 billion pounds, according to the report issued by the National Association for PET Container Resources, Sonoma, CA; the Association of Postconsumer Plastic Recyclers, Washington, DC; and the PET Resin Association, New York, NY. “This healthy rate increase is a real reminder of the ongoing viability of recycling and the country’s commitment to it,” says Bill O’Grady, APR chairman and vice president of Talco Plastics, Inc., Corona, CA. The Report also details the end-uses for the record 915 million pounds of recycled PET utilized in U.S. manufacturing applications, including fiber for carpet and apparel, strapping, sheet, film, food, beverage and non-food bottles and containers.

PET recycling rates also are rising in Europe, with post-sorting collection jumping more than 11% in 2008 to 1.26 million tons. According to Petcore, Brussels, Belgium, fiber continues to be the largest user of recycled PET, followed by sheet, blowmolding and strapping. Exports to the Far East accounted for nearly 17% of collected PET, and the tonnage exported increased 20%.

In the UK, a report commissioned by Recoup, Lincoln, UK, and sponsored by Reckitt Benckiser, Slough, UK, shows the plastic bottle recycling rate increased to 40% in 2008. Collection of non-bottle plastics also has risen. The growth is attributed largely to the expanded availability of curbside collection and recycle-on-the-go points.

Back in the US, steel continues to be the most recycled food and beverage container. According to the Steel Recycling Institute, Pittsburgh, PA, the steel container recycling rate has steadily increased, rising from 55.9% in 1998 to 65.2% in 2008. Recycling 1.5 million tons of steel containers in 2008 not only diverts material from landfills, but also saves 2500 pounds of iron ore, 1400 pounds of coal and 120 pounds of limestone for every ton of steel recycled. Recycling also has helped the U.S. steel industry reduce energy demands while increasing production.

Collection initiatives divert empty containers from landfills

The upward trend in recycling appears likely to accelerate if some new collection programs meet expectations. In Atlanta, GA, a pilot incentive program involving the City of Atlanta; Rehrig Pacific Co., Los Angeles, CA; Coca-Cola Recycling, LLC, Atlanta, GA; and RecycleBank, New York, NY; rewards 10,000 households for their curbside recycling efforts. Each home in the pilot area receives a 96-gallon blue cart made by Rehrig Pacific and purchased with funds provided by Atlanta-based Coca-Cola Enterprises. Carts are equipped with an ID tag with the resident’s address and RecycleBank account number and are scanned at every pickup to earn RecycleBank Points. Points can be redeemed for rewards, gift cards, groceries, and products at hundreds of local and national RecycleBank Reward Partners. Coca-Cola Recycling predicts the program will allow it to recover 150 metric tons of packaging materials.

Baltimore Ravens Fan Cans In Baltimore, MD, Ravens football team-themed recycling containers from Baltimore-based Fan Cans, LLC has doubled collection of recyclable materials at M&T Bank Stadium. “We’re thrilled to see such an increase in the total tonnage of recyclables collected during Ravens games,” notes Jeff Provenzano, director of Football Operations for the Maryland Stadium Authority. “Coca-Cola and its ‘Give It Back’ campaign sponsor the Ravens-themed Fan Cans that have been placed along the popular Ravens’ Walk at M&T Bank Stadium. Fans are crazy about these one-of-a-kind recycling bins, and we’re on track to surpass our collection goals for the year,” reports Provenzano.

The 45-gallon recycling and waste receptacles grab fan attention with lids shaped like baseball batter, football or motor sports helmets, custom colors and organization logos. Containers consist of up to 50% pre- and post-consumer resin and are themselves recyclable.

In New York, an expanded bottle bill has gone into effect. As of November 8, 2009, retailers must collect a $0.05-per-bottle deposit on bottled water as well as on containers of beer and carbonated soft drinks, which have been subject to a deposit for decades. The law also stipulates unredeemed deposits revert to the state, a change that is expected to generate millions of dollars for state coffers each year.

Unfortunately, barriers to higher recycling rates remain. According to the 2008 ABA Community Survey, commissioned by the American Beverage Association, Washington, DC, and performed by R.W. Beck, Seattle, WA, curbside collection is available to only 74% of the U.S. population and often involves a subscription fee that reduces participation because households are unable or unwilling to pay for the service.

Level of recycled content rises in plastic packaging

After seven years of research and development, Canada-based Naya Spring Water, Mirabel, QC, has launched a 100% recycled polyethylene terephthalate (RPET) bottle. “We’re proud to be the first major spring water brand to introduce 100% recycled plastic bottles, which is a win for the environment as well as for consumers who enjoy bottled water and want to reduce their impact,” says Daniel Cotte, president of Naya Waters, Inc. The new bottles replace containers with 25% or 50% RPET. After a December 2009 debut in New York, NY, distribution expands throughout North America in 2010. When compared to a 1.5-liter virgin PET container, the 100% RPET 1.5-liter reduces full lifecycle carbon footprint 30%, according to data certified by the Carbon Trust, London, UK.

In addition to use of recycled content and container lightweighting, Naya focuses on water quality and conservation of natural resources, minimizing operational impact and recycling. As a member of 1% for the Planet, Waitsfield, VT, Naya gives 1% of total revenues to environmental programs and established the NAYA Waterways Fund with the Fondation de la Faune du Quebec, Sainte-Foy, QC, a nonprofit committed to wildlife conservation.

Operationally, Naya currently recycles 96% of its plant waste, including paper, corrugated and plastic. To encourage recycling, particularly in under-served public areas, Naya supports education programs, including a project in partnership with Consortium Echo-logique, Montreal, QC, which introduces pilot programs to collect recyclables in pedestrian streets. Naya is also a founding member of Le Table pour la Recuperation Hors Foyer, Montreal, QC, a nonprofit that implements large-scale recycling programs in out-of-home channels.

In a first for the healthcare industry, one manufacturer has developed a 100% RPET liquid prescription oval. It’s won a Greener Package Award from the Greener Package Expert Network, Chicago, IL, and a DIANA Award from the Healthcare Distribution Management Association, Arlington, VA.

Another manufacturer focuses on 100% recycled polyolefins for packaging of 12 certified-organic skin-, body- and hair-care products from Evolve Beauty, London, UK. The food-grade, post-consumer-recycled high-density polyethylene for the petal-shaped 200-milliliter (ml) bottles for the body- and hair-care products is derived from recycled milk bottles. The 100ml jars for the skin-care products consist of 100% post-industrial-recycled PP. “Evolve Beauty is all about being eco-smart -- organic, eco-friendly beauty products with no compromise on performance, design or affordability,” explains Laura Rudoe, managing director of Evolve Beauty.

Recycled content containers for organic body- and hair-care products Thermoformed containers for takeout, salad, snacks, deli items and entrees increasingly consist of 100% RPET. The food-grade Bottle Box™, for example, is produced from 100% RPET by Global PET, Perris, CA, and sold by Direct Pack, Inc., Sun Valley, CA. “With Bottle Box we have embarked on a major environmental movement within the food packaging industry, and we have introduced the very first of its kind product,” says Craig Snedden, president of Direct Pack. A 10-year agreement with Plastic Recycling Corp. of California, Sonoma, CA, gives Global PET a secure source of recycled PET bottles. Stackable containers feature an airtight button-locking system. The 100% RPET containers help foodservice, food processing, supermarket, agricultural firms “attain their own sustainability goals…without sacrificing performance or aesthetics in their packaging,” concludes Laura Murphy, vice president Marketing and Sales for Direct Pack.

Using PCR resin may require some fine-tuning, particularly at higher levels. According to Amcor PET Packaging, Ann Arbor, MI, PCR material is often darker and more yellow than virgin material due to the presence of mixed colors and other materials in the recycling stream and heat exposure. Oxygen scavengers, for example, brown when exposed to the heat of the recycling process. Polyvinyl chloride and polylactic acid perform similarly to the degree that amounts in the parts per million range cause a noticeable darkening of PCR PET.

Biodegradable Materials

Researchers study new sources for bioplastics

Research on algae, tobacco and other plant materials may end the dependence many of today’s bioplastics have on corn and other food crops.

Cereplast, Inc., Hawthorne, CA, a manufacturer of proprietary bio-based materials such as Compostables® and Hybrid® resins, plans to launch a family of algae-based bioplastics. Algae biomass would be harvested from photo-bioreactors that clean carbon dioxide and nitrous oxide from smokestack emissions and serve as the raw material for biopolymer feedstock or biofuel. “Algae as biomass makes sense in that it helps close the loop on polluting gases and can be a significant renewable resource,” says Frederic Scheer, founder, chairman and chief executive officer of Cereplast. “Based on our own efforts, as well as recent commitments by major players in the algae field, we believe that algae has the potential to become one of the most important ‘green’ feedstocks for biofuels, as well as bioplastics.” With research showing promising results, Cereplast predicts its algae-based resins could replace 50% or more of the petroleum content used in traditional plastics.

A recent field trial of tobacco genetically engineered to express polyhydroxyalkanoate (PHA) biobased polymers shows the best plants produce 3% to 5% PHA. The study by Metabolix, Inc., Cambridge, MA, advances the company’s effort to develop nonfood sources for biobased plastics. Metabolix also is working on ways to co-produce plastics, chemicals and energy from crops such as switchgrass, oilseeds and sugarcane. Its Telles joint venture with Archer Daniels Midland (ADM) Co., Decatur, IL, currently depends on corn for its compostable Mirel PHA bioplastics.

Study forecasts strong growth for bioplastics

Bioplastics production capacity will jump from 360,000 tons in 2007 to 2.3 million tons in 2013, a 37% annual growth rate, according to a study commissioned by European Bioplastics, Berlin, Germany, and the European Polysaccharide Network of Excellence, Sophia Antipolis, France. In addition, the authors from Utrecht University in The Netherlands estimate bioplastics could replace up to 90% of polymers now derived from oil and gas. However, this isn’t likely to happen quickly due to relatively low oil prices, and high production costs and restricted production capacity for biomass-based polymers.

The study builds on one published in 2005 and presents three growth trajectories, baseline, optimistic and conservative. It also describes the producers, pricing and production process for all major bio-based plastics, material properties and the extent to which they could replace petrochemical polymers.

Green Planet Bottling adopts PLA bottle

Water from Green Planet Bottling, Chicago, IL, comes in a half-liter container made of Ingeo polylactic acid from NatureWorks LLC, Minnetonka, MN. According to the company, a gallon of oil is saved for every 60 containers (2.5 cases) of Green Planet water sold.

To ensure the PLA containers are recycled, the Green Planet buys back empties from recycling centers and helps its foodservice, institutional and corporate customers establish collection programs. The empties are then recycled into new containers in a closed-loop bottle-to-bottle process. For added sustainability, the company relies on regional water sources so no product travels more than 300 miles.

Bottled water brands choose biodegradable PET

Boreal Water Collection Inc., Kiamesha Lake, NY, and Native Waters, LLC, Fall River, MA, have adopted biodegradable polyethylene terephthalate (PET) containers.

Boreal, which recently expanded its filling operations with the purchase of the 125-year-old Leisure Time Spring Water Co., offers the biodegradable PET container as a new option to its private-label customers.

A 700-milliliter (ml) bottle for Native Waters joins a 500ml size and addresses consumer demand for a larger container. Both sizes also contain 25% recycled content.

An additive from ENSO Bottles, LLC, Phoenix, AZ, called EcoPure, imparts biodegradability to the PET resin in anaerobic and aerobic environments and is said to offer a more shelf-stable solution than starch-based polylactic acid or oxo-degradable resins. The additive has no impact on the physical properties of the PET, but attracts microbes in compost facilities or landfills that metabolize the PET and break it down into humus and biogases. The biodegradable PET bottles also can be recycled in the PET waste stream. Although the impact of the additive on recycled PET is the subject of some debate, ENSO notes its material has been third-party tested and validated for biodegradability and recyclability according to standards set by ASTM International, West Conshohocken, PA.

Nevertheless the Association of Postconsumer Plastic Recyclers (APR), Washington, DC, currently classifies degradable additives and degradable plastics as contaminants in the solid waste stream and advises against their usage, citing the absence of third-party-certified data to support claims of degradability and recyclability.

“The facts are very clear,” says David Cornell, the technical director of APR in a FactSheet posted on the association’s website. “The degradable additive concept effectively renders the product using the additive nonrecyclable. Many recycled plastics are used to make durable goods. Failure of these next-use products, such as carpets or piping, could range from distressing to tragic,” he adds.

The Factsheet goes on to state “APR has seen no data which demonstrate no harm done during or after the recycling process. With the variety of durable end uses recycled plastics are used for, the idea of degrading material runs counter to value creation and good stewardship.”

About the author

Hallie Forcinio has covered packaging-related environmental topics for more than 20 years, first as an editor on Food & Drug Packaging magazine (now Food & Beverage Packaging) and more recently as a freelance packaging journalist and principal of Forcinio Communications, an editorial services firm. “My interest in the environment dates back to a high school government class,” she notes. “I was collecting glass, newspapers and aluminum cans for recycling long before my community had a curbside recycling program.” In addition, to preparing the TricorBraun Sustainability Times, she contributes articles to numerous trade publications including Packaging Machinery Technology and Pharmaceutical Technology.

(At left) For mineral water and carbonated soft drinks, Bericap offers the lighter DoubleSeal SuperShorty CSD Eco closure. It’s used by Teinacher (part of Mineralbrunnen Überkingen-Teinach AG, Bad Überkingen, Germany), which made the change after ensuring consumers would like the short-skirt closure and shorter neck bottle.