Podcast: Packaging Perspectives from NGOs: WWF

Tesco's grated cheese pack is redesigned by Coveris and is recyclable

After conducting market and efficacy studies, Flexible Packaging Circular Economy (CEFLEX) announced plans to develop a next-generation waste processing plant based on its Quality Recovery Process (QRP), and plans to put it into commercial operation in 2023.

The CEFLEX project involves more than 180 companies, associations and organizations from all over Europe. Members include BASF, Dow, EMSUR, ExxonMobil, Solvay and Total, and stakeholders agree that the collection and classification of flexible packaging will be an important part of the realization of a circular economy.

QRP is a mechanical recycling solution used to increase the recycling rate of soft plastic packaging in household waste. CEFLEX’s goal is to combine four existing technologies that have apparently been tested and implemented in different European facilities—advanced sorting technology, hot washing, squeezing and additional filtration, and deodorization—in one commercial location, it said Not completed.

CEFLEX claims that integrating these technologies into one plant can improve the efficiency and reliability of recycled materials. According to Dana Mosora, CEFLEX's technical workflow leader, this will "make it a fully mature quality recycling process and make it possible to obtain the highest quality recycling from flexible packaging."

For example, according to reports, CEFLEX's research on QRP has observed that at least 20-25% of high-grade PE recycled materials can be produced from 310 packs of flexible packaging, which are usually made of different types of PE film. Currently, CEFLEX states that only 17% of PE in Europe is sorted and recycled.

According to CEFLEX, during the QRP period, the remaining 55-60% of the materials processed from one pack of 310 packs will be used for rigorous commercial activities, such as the manufacture of bottle caps.

CEFLEX's further research clearly examined the economic viability of the plant and indicated that any investment in the project could be offset by its long-term profitability. The initial investment may involve equipment costs, such as the machinery required for advanced classification and hot and cold washing, as well as general operating costs.

The researchers worked with CEFLEX to create a model to predict the cost of passing 310 packs of flexible packaging through the QRP factory and the revenue that may be generated through this process. The model conceptualizes the material composition of each bundle to generate data about its separation, the value range of recycled materials, and the price of subsequent recycled materials.

CEFLEX said that the economic model found that if there is sufficient demand for the output materials of the factory, it can generate more than 600 euros per ton of revenue. Since the processing cost is about 520 euros, the net profit per ton is 80 euros per 310 bales. According to reports, this is sufficient to "guarantee" long-term profits for investors and stakeholders. CEFLEX added that similar results have been found for flexible waste packages composed of other materials such as polyolefin (PO) and polypropylene (PP). .

Professor Steven De Meester, a researcher at Ghent University, who worked with CEFLEX to simulate the affordability of QRP, explained: “This is a very important conclusion because it shows that it is actually worth the effort.”

CEFLEX researchers also studied which markets will benefit from the supply of recycled materials that it claims can compete with virgin plastics. CEFLEX pointed out that some plastic companies require a minimum threshold of 30% for recycled materials in packaging, and the European Plastics Association calls on the European Union to make it a mandatory target in 2030.

Professor Kim Ragaert, head of the Department of Circular Plastics at Maastricht University in the Netherlands, said: “A PE finishing shrink film is made of 30% recycled content mixed with QRP materials.” According to reports, this is wrapping a bundle of Pepsi bottles. The time has worked well and seems to be built on the early research of CEFLEX's sustainable end market workflow.

Ragaert added that the resealable PP bags showed a similar 30% recovery threshold, which is "very promising." The team reportedly studied the applications of PO and PP and how recycled polymers can be used in high-value rigid applications to fully understand the market for QRP materials.

“We are now working on irrigation pipes, we are working on pallets, we are working on home and gardening applications,” Ragaert said. The CEFLEX research team has planned further trials to check the supply and demand of recycled flexible packaging in its QRP.

The study of the actual and financial feasibility of QRP factories is intended to support CEFLEX's goal of putting such factories into commercial operation by the end of 2023.

Mosora concluded: "This will help us prove the economic viability of the solution on a large-scale industrial scale.

"We need to integrate more partners in order to build demonstrations on an industrial scale and achieve better quality and quantity, and most importantly, to verify the business model."

In a position statement issued earlier this year, CEFLEX stated that all flexible packaging must be collected and sorted in a targeted manner, especially in countries that have not yet been collected such as the United Kingdom. This should go through a separate stream that does not include paper, Cardboard or glass to achieve maximum recycling quality.

CEFLEX is collaborating with PCEP, Petcore Europe, Styrenics Circular Solutions, and MORE Recycling to conduct a "Europe's first in-depth analysis" of household packaging waste-a key component in the development of an effective and viable waste stream for flexible packaging. Although collection is an important part of the circular economy and CEFLEX has set a 100% collection goal, the group also acknowledges that upstream innovation is needed to incentivize and promote the recycling of flexible packaging.

The plan for the QRP facility is an important step for CEFLEX in providing the ability to efficiently collect, sort and recycle flexible packaging throughout Europe. CEFLEX also calls on the Packaging and Packaging Waste Directive (PPWD) to encourage innovation and cooperation in packaging design and recycling infrastructure.

Victoria Hattersley spoke with Steve Sena, vice president of business development at Truvant, a packaging service provider, to find out.

We discussed issues such as plastic leakage and packaging sustainability with Erin Simon, head of plastic waste and business at WWF.

© Packaging Europe Ltd. A fast news communication group company. all rights reserved.