Collaboration Across the Value Chain Supports Circular Solutions

For plastic packaging, companies along the entire value chain are working to extend the life of plastics beyond their initial use in an effort to minimize resource consumption and waste generation. © Liubomir – stock.adobe.com

A fundamental shift is changing the way plastic packaging materials are sourced, manufactured and repurposed.

By: Anna Rajkovic, NOVA Chemicals market and innovation manager for mechanical recycling

Packaging design has become a cross-company team effort. Once viewed as a disposable commodity, packaging is now an important part of the circular economy in which materials have the potential to be recycled and recirculated back into the market. Beyond protecting and transporting products, packaging is becoming the focus of sustainability initiatives centered around increasing recycling and reuse. Circular pathways require thoughtful design and industry collaboration to allow materials to reenter the market instead of being disposed of in landfills or reaching the environment.

For plastic packaging, companies along the entire value chain are working to extend the life of plastics beyond their initial use in an effort to minimize resource consumption and waste generation. Governments around the world are beginning to mandate recyclable or recycled materials, requiring a fundamental shift in the way packaging materials are sourced, manufactured, and repurposed.

There are many opportunities available for improving the recyclability of plastics, but in lockstep with this, the infrastructure to collect and process them must continue to be developed, even in the most modern of economies. By building relationships across the value chain, industry players can support plastics circularity and establish a strong supply chain for recycled materials. When companies at various production stages work together, the collective effort toward achieving a shared goal accelerates innovation at scale and builds resiliency for the manufacturing supply chain, helping to increase the reliability and the use of recycled materials.

Polyethylene (PE) is an extremely versatile material, and demand for recycled PE is steadily increasing. Advances in resin technology and film production processes are expanding its use in a wide variety of flexible packaging, and high-quality sources of recycled PE are needed for demanding applications like food-contact packaging. Building a circular supply chain to meet these demands for high-performance recycled PE requires a multifaceted approach from the entire industry, from resin suppliers to retailers.

Truly circular packaging solutions cannot focus only on designing new recyclable products or only on increasing recycling rates, but must include both upstream and downstream innovations from an interconnected network of suppliers and producers from how packaging is collected to how it is used again in new products. Although the plastics circular economy is still developing, companies are already making meaningful changes through new processes and partnerships that connect and support operations across the value chain.

Material Sources

Sourcing quality feedstock is essential for supporting the recycled PE supply chain, and distributed networks are needed to collect flexible packaging. Some recyclers are procuring feedstock from existing upstream recycling programs like store drop-off bins for PE films. Another example is direct collaboration between mechanical recycling facilities and the generators of feedstock, which helps reduce the amount of films used in commerce from going to landfills.

Bringing untapped recycling streams into the market helps bolster supply of feedstock, and working together allows for traceable records for applications with high purity standards like food-contact recycled PE. Collaboration between recyclers and retailers or other generators can help develop programs and protocols to manage the collection and distribution of materials to the appropriate facilities for reprocessing, resulting in higher quality PE feedstock and a stronger supply of post-consumer recycled (PCR) materials. When this material is directed back to the generator of the post-use film, the circular model reinforces itself as the quality received is directly proportional to the initial quality.

Recycling Technology

After collection, there are multiple recycling methods that can be used to process PE. Mechanical recycling is the most established method and the most commonly used for recycling PE, although other technologies like advanced recycling are also gaining traction. Mechanical recycling physically reprocesses PE materials without changing their chemical structure, offering a simple option to repurpose many types of single layer and mono-material packaging.

Companies all along the value chain have begun investing in mechanical recycling technology to address rPE supply security. Improvements in recycling infrastructure and new collection models should also enable a more abundant supply of higher quality recycled resins, helping companies expand the use of recycled materials and meet recycled content requirements.

Packaging Development

Converters are instrumental in supporting the expanded adoption of recycled PE. Working with resin suppliers, they can help design new products and materials that run on existing packaging equipment and meet the necessary performance requirements. Packaging structures are being redesigned with recyclability in mind, such as all-PE mono-material pouches, bottles, and closures. Incorporating recycled PE into packaging materials can require process adjustments, which is why early-stage communication between suppliers and converters can help overcome challenges and bring new recycled products to market more efficiently.

Collaboration Opportunities

Partnerships help align supply and demand and scale sustainable practices. Supply agreements, such as a brand owner committing to purchase recycled PE from a resin supplier for packaging, strengthen the economic case for further investment in recycling infrastructure. Brands and retailers that participate in both the production and end-of-life processes for packaging are creating closed-loop operations in which packaging materials are turned back into new high-value recycled packaging, as opposed to being downcycled into lower grade materials. These circular pathways help companies preserve material value, and support supply chain visibility and transparency.

Building strong relationships and sharing knowledge throughout the value chain will be essential to achieve a circular economy. In the packaging industry, advances are being made as resin producers, suppliers, converters, brand owners, recyclers, and retailers work together to create new models of material production and recycling. By addressing packaging design as a joint initiative, designers and manufacturers are equipped with a comprehensive view of the options available for sourcing and reprocessing materials, which helps construct more efficient products that are aligned with company and consumer demands.

Transitioning to a new economic model is a huge undertaking, but change is possible through collaboration and dedication. Working together enables the system-level approach needed to overcome challenges and expand circular practices to build a more sustainable future.

About the Author

Anna Rajkovic is the market and innovation manager for mechanical recycling at NOVA Chemicals. Learn more at https://www.novachem.com.