Flexible packaging could be more effectively recovered at recycling centres if the work of a US non-profit group is successful.
The Research Foundation for Health and Environmental Effects has launched a project called Materials Recovery for the Future, which aims to keep flexible packaging out of landfills and recover it through recycling centres in the same way as the glass and aluminum containers it is replacing.
Flexible packaging is often blamed for gumming up the equipment at material recovery facilities (MRFs), so the study will first monitor how these items move through sortation technologies such as screens and optical scanners.
The test methodology developed by consulting group Resource Recycling Systems calls for adding a representative mix of the flexible packaging used by consumers – resealable food packages, soup and tuna pouches, pet food bags and snack bags – into a stream of recyclables going through the sorters. The flexible packaging captured in the resulting bale will then be measured to determine the sorting effectiveness.
“We believe data from this collaborative research will help us learn how to recover and divert more valuable resins from landfills,” Diane Herndon, sustainability manager for Nestle Purina PetCare Co, said.
Nestle USA, PepsiCo and Procter & Gamble are among the project sponsors, along with Dow Chemical Co, Sealed Air, SC Johnson, the Association for Postconsumer Plastic Recyclers, the Flexible Packaging Association and the Society of the Plastics Industry Inc.
The packaging is becoming increasingly popular for a variety of reasons, according to Jeff Wooster, global sustainability director for Dow Packaging and Specialty Plastics.
“Flexible packaging offers many benefits we take for granted,” Wooster said.
“It typically uses less energy and materials than other packaging options, helps extend food shelf life and minimise spoilage, and reduces waste by preserving and protecting products until they're consumed. This new sortation research is critical in helping close the recovery loop for flexible packaging, and we are committed to this collaboration to drive solutions for increased recovery rates.”
The research will be a part of a series of projects to create a mainstream recovery system for flexible packaging using technology currently in place. The results are expected to be published in the second quarter of 2016.
The Research Foundation for Health and Environmental Effects has launched a project called Materials Recovery for the Future, which aims to keep flexible packaging out of landfills and recover it through recycling centres.
