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Viña Errazuriz moves to lightweight bottles
Jane Ellis, packagingnews.co.uk, 22 September 2008
Viña Errazuriz, the Chilean wine producer, has estimated that it will save 500 tonnes of glass by reducing the weight of its wine bottles by 12%.
The new 425g bottles, down from 485g, were shown to the UK trade at the Wines of Chile Annual Tasting and Major Buyers' Tasting earlier this month.
Minimal changes have been made to the dimensions of the bottle in the lightweighting process.
The Chilean producer will first use lightweight green glass supplied by Cristalchile for its Estate red wines, including Cabernet Sauvignon, Carmenère, Merlot, Sangiovese and Shiraz.
Estate Pinot Noir will transfer to the lighter bottle by the end of the year.
Errazuriz commercial director Carlos de Carlos said: "There are many reasons why we have chosen to move our key wines to lightweight bottles, but most important for us are the environmental implications. We have reduced the weight per bottle and this will lessen the energy used for bottle production and transportation and so help reduce pollution."
The bottles will be sold with promotional collars printed on recycled card to highlight the environmental benefits of their reduced weight. Consumers will be able to win long-life lightbulbs in return for their energy-saving suggestions.
The Errazuriz Estate was founded in 1870 and its sixth generation uses sustainable practices wherever possible during its winemaking process. |
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UK glass may fail on EU recycling target
Simeon Goldstein, Packaging News, 01 February 2007
The UK could struggle to meet EU Packaging Waste Directive glass recycling targets of 60% by 2008, despite the container industry recycling record quantities last year.
British Glass members recycled 756,000 tonnes of glass to make new bottles and jars in 2006, new figures show.
But this is 125,000 tonnes below the UK government business target for 2007, to recycle 69.5%, and represents only a 1.8% annual increase, compared to 10% growth in the previous year. Official government figures are due in the next couple of months.
British Glass recycling manager Rebecca Cocking said: “These figures are a concern. If this slowdown continues, there must be real doubt about future targets.”
Cocking said that the growth of mixed glass collection was reducing the availability of clear and brown glass. The industry needs to colour separate glass before it can be recycled.
“This is costly and ironically increases the energy we use,” she added.
During the colour separation process, up to 15% of the clear and amber glass is lost because it cannot be easily extracted. The remaining glass is either exported, or, if it is of poor quality, used for other products such as aggregates.
However, using glass in aggregates is one-off recycling and fails to reap the environmental rewards associated with the closed-loop recycling for bottles and jars.
Insufficient clear glass is a long-standing issue in the UK. Scotch whisky companies export vast quantities, while a large amount of wine in green glass bottles enters the country. This means there is much more green glass than industry can deal with. |
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WRAP plan will cut UK glass imports
David McCormack, Packaging News, 01 October 2006
Not-for-profit waste company WRAP has launched an initiative to reduce the amount of glass waste generated by the wine industry by 20,000 tonnes.
Working with British Glass, WRAP wants to encourage wine importers, brand owners and retailers to bulk-import wine and then bottle it in lighter glass bottles manufactured in the UK.
The UK is the world’s largest wine importer, with over one billion litres imported each year from Europe and the New World. Eighty per cent arrives already bottled.
According to WRAP, the average weight of a 75cl wine bottle is 500g. But there are bottles imported from France weighing only 300g and WRAP also wants to encourage more lightweighting.
“Lighter bottles ultimately mean less waste as well as making important savings in raw materials and energy use,” said David Workman, director general of British Glass.
Commercial trials involving Asda and Tesco start this month. Each trial will take six months from mould design until the bottles are on supermarket shelves. “Our research shows that an additional 10 per cent switch will mean 55,000 tonnes less glass imported. As well as tonnage benefits, this move will improve the industry’s carbon emissions profile and reduce business costs,” said Andy Dawe, glass technology manager at WRAP.
The idea follows WRAP’s Container Lite project, which resulted in Coors Brewers reducing the weight of its 330ml Grolsch bottle by 13 per cent and saving 4,500 tonnes of glass waste per year. |
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700ml bottle is Rockware first
Packaging News, 01 December 2006
Rockware Glass claims to have produced its first 700ml spirit bottle that weighs in at less than 300g.
The company’s design and production team have spent 18 months developing the bottle, which weighs 298g and was created using the narrow-neck press and blow technique.
The lightest 70cl bottle previously created by Rockware weighed 340g.
Spokesman Simon Morgan attributed the reduction in weight to a more even spread of glass over the shape of the bottle but without weakening the overall structure.
The company said the lightweight bottle could be mass-produced but retained the strength and impact characteristics of a heavier bottle.
Morgan said the company was confident that the light-weight bottle would help glass maintain its position as the premium packaging material for spirits.
Rockware is in talks with its customers about using the bottle to package their own-labels brands, but is unwilling to disclose any names. |
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Recresco wins £100m Quinn recycled glass contract
Jane Ellis, packagingnews.co.uk, 13 August 2008
Recresco, the glass recycling firm, has signed a £100m 10-year deal with Quinn Glass to supply the bottle manufacturer with glass cullet for reprocessing into new bottles.
The Nottinghamshire-based firm will supply Quinn's facility at Ellesmere Port in Cheshire with two million tonnes of used glass, collected from local authority kerbside collection schemes, bottle banks and by commercial operators across the UK.
Recresco is currently building a new sorting and processing plant on the site of its own facility at Ellesmere Port that will be able to handle 4,000 tonnes of mixed glass a week.
The plant, which is scheduled to open at the end of September, will separate glass according to colour - at least 90% of which will be used to make new glass bottles and containers.
Quinn Glass director Adrian Curry said: "This contract not only provides considerable benefit to both Quinn Glass and Recresco, but also does much to sustain the long-term demand for recycled glass."
Quinn Glass is still awaiting planning permission for its plant, more than 18 months after the government refused the previous application.
The plant's annual production is estimated at 1.2 billion containers, and it also has a bottling facility capable of processing 400 bottles of wine, or 1,000 bottles of beer, per minute.
Construction began at the former power station in 2003, on the basis of planning permission for a smaller factory, while the company applied to build a larger operation.
In January 2007, the government refused planning permission, but invited Quinn to apply again. |
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Wrap issues glass recycling guidance
Liz Wells, packagingnews.co.uk, 30 July 2008
Wrap has issued new guidance to help local authorities boost the quality, financial and environmental benefits of their glass recycling collection services.
The 20-page Good Practice Guidance provides information on the potential benefits to local authority waste managers of making the most of collecting and recycling waste container glass (cullet).
It emphasises how a sustainable service for collecting glass of the best possible quality for end markets can provide advantages in terms of saving money, energy and resources.
The guidance was developed to help local authority officers understand more about the UK demand for colour-separated cullet and the related environmental benefits of glass recycling so they are better informed when reviewing services and tendering contracts.
It was developed following significant research into glass collection and reprocessing practices with local authorities and waste management companies.
Marcus Gover, Wrap market development programme director, said: "How waste glass is collected can have a huge impact on its subsequent re-use and end markets. So we are keen to work with local authority officers and waste management contractors to help to make this a success."
Some 1.5 million tonnes of cullet is collected in the UK each year. However, an increasing proportion of this is mixed-colour which often cannot be sorted sufficiently for recycling back into glass bottles. |
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Analysis: container glass
Simeon Goldstein, Packaging News, 01 March 2007
High costs and the entry of Quinn Glass have disturbed the container glass sector and future prosperity may depend on a willingness to offer complementary services such as filling.
Rockware’s plan to close a furnace at its Barnsley glass-making plant (Packaging News, February 2007), following a closure by Beatson Clark last year, highlights the difficulties facing a container glass industry suffering from high energy costs and overcapacity.
While further closures do not seem to be imminent, the shift to using lower-cost production centres, such as in Eastern Europe, might mean more are possible.
Peta Conn, global packaging manager at market research firm Euromonitor International, says competition from other packaging materials – such as pouches and thin-wall containers for fresh pasta sauces – might also make glass, alongside metals, particularly vulnerable.
“This means there is a high risk of further closures,” she adds.
Labour MP Eric Illsley, who has seen some 600 jobs go in the glass-making industry in his Barnsley Central constituency over the past year, says some of the blame also lies with the government, which has given grants to the new Quinn Glass factory in Cheshire (see below) even though the firm does not have planning permission for its enlarged site.
“There’s little help for existing players, who can’t match this,” he says.
Wider benefits
However, although it has refused planning permission, the Department for Communities and Local Government has said that the Quinn factory could benefit the whole of the UK glass industry – its inclusion of a bottling facility perhaps showing the way forward for glass manufacturers.
Indeed, increased competition, stimulating innovation, and adaptation to a new business climate might point to a healthy future for container glass.
Container glass is the largest single component of the UK glass industry – to the tune of some two million tonnes in 2005 – and accounts for around two-thirds of total production.
Profit margins may have been eroded by the climate change levy and minimum wage legislation, as well as high energy prices, but glass production has increased at a steady rate in recent years and, perhaps significantly, at a higher level than in much of Western Europe.
Customers’ perceptions of glass as a good packaging material also seem to be on the increase.
Rockware marketing manager Sharon Crayton says: “We have recently seen examples of glass packaging being selected over alternative materials on the basis of both its premium and environmental credentials, which is very encouraging for us.
“Going forward, a major challenge is obviously the effective management of our business in the face of large rises in our cost base, as well as trying to meet environmental targets. But we have technical and training programmes in place to meet the challenge.”
Euromonitor’s Conn says there are some concerns that the glass industry is unfairly discriminated against, compared with other packaging materials, because recycling targets are so high.
But, if targets are high, this perhaps reflects the fact that glass is easily recyclable. The failure to use more recycled cullet is more likely a result of inadequate waste collection methods.
Poor recycling systems, as well as environmental taxes, could put UK manufacturers at a competitive disadvantage compared to their European counterparts. But the climate change agenda is also the impetus to source locally to reduce the carbon footprint.
For British Glass chairman David Workman, this could be good news for the container glass industry. “Transporting glass containers is tantamount to shipping a lot of fresh air around,” he says. “It’s not normally economically viable shifting glass bottles over long distances.”
Consequently, although there could be a risk of production shifting to low-cost regions such as the Middle East, losing out to Western Europe or the Far East is less likely.
Diversification could also play an important role.
The UK is a net importer of glass containers because of the shortfall in domestic production of green glass. If the industry can redress the colour imbalance, it could soften the effect of Quinn’s arrival.
Balancing supply and demand
“I could foresee a situation where growth in the marketplace could offset the rise in capacity [from Quinn] and bring demand and supply into equilibrium,” says Workman.
There is also the issue of container glass manufacturers taking on more of the filling processes.
If more bottling is done here it could deter companies from looking overseas. Falling gas prices could also put UK companies in a much more competitive position, which could be a further incentive to work here.
“A lot hinges on the customer base staying in the UK,” adds Workman. “But if that were to happen, the future looks rosy.”
The Quinn effect
- Quinn moved into the container glass market in 1998 with a factory in Northern Ireland. Construction of its £250m plant in Cheshire started in 2003, on the basis of existing planning permission for a smaller factory, while the company applied to increase the size by 25%. This has been refused, but the company has been invited to make a fresh application.
- Quinn’s output is predicted to be 1.2bn containers a year. While the new plant will increase capacity in the market, it is likely to be lower than initially feared, falling between 9% and 18% of the current demand for container glass. |
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Wrap launches online database for lightweight bottles
Jill Park, packagingnews.co.uk, 13 May 2009
Wrap stepped up its efforts to promote lighter glass packaging with the launch of a new online directory of lightweight wine bottles at the London International Wine Fair this week.
The online database is available free of charge and enables producers, agents, brand owners and retailers to view what has already been created in terms of glass bottles weighing 450g or under.
Wrap has also worked with British Glass to establish a methodology for UK manufacturers to calculate how much recycled content is in glass bottles.
The methodology is in line with the post 2010 Courtauld Commitment target that focuses on packaging optimisation as opposed to just weight.
Wrap is currently conducting a number of individual projects with brands, retailers and bottle manufacturers under its GlassRite scheme.
Next week, representatives from the body will meet with the Champagne Information Bureau in France to discuss packaging optimisation in the sector.
In the UK, Sainsbury's and Pernod Ricard have already started investigating the use of lighter bottles for thier cava and Mumm champagne ranges, respectively.
"Everybody is watching Sainsbury's and Pernod Ricard with interest," Wrap drinks category manager Nicola Jenkin told Packaging News. "They want to see whether these bottles are going to burst or if they are going to be OK."
Kindsland Wines and Spirit in Manchester is also working with Quinn Glass and Tesco to trial a 300g wine bottle. A mock-up has been created that will be tested through the supply chain and in stores.
This work with brands and suppliers has helped Wrap to dispel any doubts the industry had about the organisation's work, explained Jenkin.
"What's become much more noticeable as we've become more engaged with industry is while we've learnt a lot, the industry has learnt we are not a bunch of hippies either."
Wrap called on companies that wish to share their experience of lightweighting in the sparkling wine sector, or get involved in future projects, to contact the organisation. |
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PLA alternatives
With greener packaging propositions figuring more prominently in retail thinking, however, the biggest competition could come via PLA-based alternatives. The first of these, ‘Belu’, is now available at selected Waitrose stores, with further roll-out to other major multiples expected later this year.
While Belu appears to sport all the right consumer environmental tags – it made its first appearance at last year’s Live8 event, for example – there are still some questions to be answered, not least in terms of provenance; the bulk of corn starch polymer emanates from the US, and in the main will be genetically modified.
Performance is also an issue. Racz says, “It’s a brilliant idea, just don’t put it near a radiator. But eventually, if they can develop that and give the bottle more stability, then what a fantastic concept.”
Meanwhile, leading category consultancy Zenith International chairman Richard Hall predicts a more immediate response. “It’s very difficult to see anything that might seriously impede PET’s hold on the water category over the next five years; it ticks almost all the consumer preference and manufacturing cost boxes.
“PLA-based alternatives, however, do represent an interesting proposition, though their impact on the market is as yet very limited. Whatever the adoption of biodegradables in the sector, one more immediate knock-on effect of growing consumer concerns about the environment might well be to cause more recyclate to be introduced into established PET solutions.”
The case for glass
While PET out-performs glass on the shelf, the margin of difference is far narrower in the food service sector
According to data supplied by Euromonitor International, 46 per cent of the 382m volume of bottled still water sold through the sector last year was in glass, which also accounted for 75 per cent of carbonated (over 114m bottles)
That restaurants keen to meet Michelin star standards are required to dispense water from a glass rather than PET bottle is one factor. Another, though, may be a consumer driven distinction between what’s acceptable in-home and on the go, and what seems more appropriate when dining out |
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Dragon Plastics to breath life into Riverside acquisition
David McCormack, packagingnews.co.uk, 14 June 2007
Welsh closure manufacturer Dragon Plastics has acquired bottle manufacturer Riverside Plastics less than 24 hours after it went into administration.
The business - now trading as Riverside Packaging - is owned by Dragon's newly created associate company Gwalia Plastics.
Both Dragon and Riverside are located at the Treforest Industrial Estate in Pontypridd, South Wales. But plans are afoot to create an integrated plant on the Dragon site.
According to Dragon managing director Rod Parker, who is also a director of the new company, the reasoning behind the purchase is to take advantage of the complementary trading opportunities.
"Riverside customers will be able to rely upon a financially secure bottle supplier with enhanced design and development capabilities and up-to-the-minute closure technology from Dragon Plastics," said Parker.
Riverside mainly produces bottles for the pharmaceutical and automotive additive markets.
Last October it won a contract to make 250ml and 500ml bottles for a new range of anti-bacterial handwashes being produced by Yorkshire-based soap manufacturer John Drury & Co.
It is not presently known if all jobs at Riverside have been secured following the acquisition.
Dragon has said it intends to invest 'substantially' in new technology and equipment for the bottle business. It has also applied for a grant from the Welsh National Assembly.
Graham McKenzie, previously sales and marketing director at Riverside Plastics, will continue with the new company as business development manager, while Rod Parker and Dragon chairman Ian Parker are both directors.
WRAP calls on companies to close HDPE bottle loop
Packaging News, 01 July 2006
The Waste and Resources Action Programme (WRAP) is urging companies to establish an industrial sorting and closed-loop recycling process for post-use HDPE bottles.
This follows the completion of a WRAP development project that demonstrated HDPE milk bottles could be recycled into new ones on a commercially viable and environmentally sound basis. Such a facility would be unique in the UK.
“It is a genuine case of ‘we have the technology’,” said Dr Paul Davidson, WRAP’s plastics technology manager (pictured). “We have introduced a capital support competition to fund up to 30 per cent of the cost of the infrastructure, plant and equipment to enable UK industry to lead the world in establishing such a recycling process.”
Michelle O’Riley, WRAP’s capital grant manager, added: “We aim to achieve up to 30 per cent recycled HDPE content in the manufacture of one quarter of the UK’s plastic milk bottle production. We also want to increase processing capacity for HDPE recycled plastic in food applications by 13,000 tonnes/yr. To meet this target, we may even support more than one plant.”
WRAP’s initial R&D project was delivered by a consortium of leading European companies and research institutes, led by the Fraunhofer Institute for Process Engineering and Packaging in Germany. Partners included Dairy Crest, Nampak Plastics and Delleve Plastics, as well as RAPRA Technology in the UK.
Companies wishing to apply for the Plastics Capital Support Programme should email the WRAP Capital Grants team, quoting reference MDP007, at capital.support@wrap.org.uk before August 29. |
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Baby bottles need BPA labelling, say campaigners
Simeon Goldstein, packagingnews.co.uk, 06 May 2008
Plastic baby bottles should carry clear labelling about the materials used to make them, the National Childbirth Trust (NCT) has said in response to concerns over the effects of Bisphenol A (BPA) on babies.
Its call comes as a number of retailers in Canada and the US, including Wal-Mart, have committed to withdrawing bottles with BPA, and are producing BPA-free ranges.
BPA is a monomer used in polycarbonates and epoxy resins used, for example, in bottles and food can linings. In animal experiments, it has been shown to interfere with growth and body functions.
Although the actual impact on humans in uncertain, the NCT is concerned about the lack of awareness of the potential risk.
NCT chief executive Belinda Phipps said: "It is important that bottles, and any items that might reach a baby's mouth, are labelled in a standard and easy to understand way."
Bottles are less likely to leak BPA at room temperature, but repeated cleaning and warm contents could increase the possibility of a leak.
RPC reusable bottle to hit shelves across Europe
Ben Bold, packagingnews.co.uk, 30 November 2009
RPC Containers Llantrisant has won a contact to supply household cleaning firm Kilrock Products with reusable bottles made from 30% recycled plastic, for the latter's eco-cleaning brand Aquo.
Aquo is the brand name for a range of surface cleaners in trigger-spray containers that can be refilled using a water-soluble capsule and reused.
Kilrock said that RPC's bottles would enable it to cut production and packaging waste by 20 times, while the light weight of the unfilled bottle woul reduce the brand's carbon footprint through low transit weights.
Kilrock, which wanted to further reduce its CO2 footprint by sourcing packaging manufactured in the UK, selected a 750ml blow-moulded PET bottle made from 30% post-consumer recycled polymer. This proportion was deemed the best to ensure high quality performance during the life of the bottle.
"This bottle is designed to be reused up to 20 times and must also be well suited to the wide range of cleaning formulations for kitchen, bathroom and glass,' said Rob Hunt, RPC Llantrisant's sales manager.
The bottle also needed to maintain a leak-proof seal with the trigger spray after repeated use. RPC adapted one of its standard bottle pre-forms, customising the neck design.
Richard Davis, managing director of Kilrock, added: "RPC Llantrisant's durable and environmentally friendly bottle has played a huge part in the success of the Aquo concept.
"The whole concept of Aquo hinges on the durability and 'green' credentials of the trigger-head bottles – this is our USP, and RPC has been very supportive of our needs throughout the development and launch of the range."
Aquo is being sold at retailers including Tesco in the UK, Netto in Denmark and Mercadona in Spain; and has been lauded by the Waste and Resources Action Programme.
Last week RPC Group said that its RPC 2010 cost-saving plan is ahead of schedule and is planning further restructuring as it reported a return to profit in half-year results.
In figures published for the six months to 30 September, the group reported sales down 8% at £351.9m, while pre-tax profit stood at £11.8m compared to a £1.4m loss in the first half of its 2008 financial year. |
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Toronto council agrees bag fee and bottle ban
packagingnews.co.uk, 03 December 2008
Toronto retailers must charge customers five cents to use plastic bags from 1 June, under a raft of new waste-reduction measures approved by its city council yesterday (2 December).
The councillors agreed to a package of measures that includes an immediate ban on the sale of bottled water at city hall that extends to other city facilities over the next two years.
Mayor David Miller described the new rules as "very progressive measures" to help the city reach its goal to divert 70% cent of waste from landfill by the end of 2010.
Despite intense industry lobbying, council rejected calls for voluntary compliance on efforts to cut the volume of retail packaging.
The council also agreed:
* A ban on plastic bags that are incompatible with the city's recycling program by 1 June 2010
* A ban on plastic take-out food containers, such as clear hard plastic, that are not recycled by the city by February 2011 |
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Demand for plastic closures continues to grow
Jane Ellis, packagingnews.co.uk, 01 July 2008
One-piece HDPE closures now account for 64% of all standard beverage closures in Europe, compared with 55% four years ago and are set to grow by 4% each year to 2012, according to a report by Applied Market Information (AMI).
The industry consultant said the use of this type of closure had been growing at nearly 9% a year, fuelled by cost reduction and light weighting initiatives. Nearly 217 billion plastic caps were produced in Europe last year in a �1.5bn business.
AMI said growth would be driven by developments in still sports and juice-based drinks and the expanding market penetration of one-way PET bottles replacing cans and cartons.
However, custom closures, including non-standard diameter flat caps, sports caps and pouch spouts, could provide manufacturers with greater opportunity for added value, the analyst added.
The demand for plastic beer closures is also expected to grow, fuelled by the use of plastic corks in glass bottles, with demand coming particularly from Eastern Europe.
AMI also predicts greater use of plastic caps in the liquid food sector owing to the advent of heat stable PET, clarified PP and multilayer containers, with demand coming from PET bottles in dairy products and the substitution of glass bottles with plastic containers for sauces, preserves, baby food and soup.
There are also further opportunities in cold fill applications such as honey.
AMI concluded that innovation and sustainability would be at the centre of plastic closure production over the next five years, focusing on "improved functionality, convenience and modernity". |
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Plastics recycling smashes EU targets
Simeon Goldstein, packagingnews.co.uk, 06 October 2009
Plastic packaging recyclers have called for more European-level support despite smashing last year's recycling targets.
European region countries recycled around 29% of plastics packaging in 2008, compared to the 22.5% target, according to the latest 'Compelling facts about plastics' report by four European plastics industry bodies.
But, Plastics Europe, European Plastics Converters, European Plastics Recyclers and the European Association of Plastics Recycling and Recovery Organisations said more needed to be done to support the plastics recycling sector.
Total plastics recycling, including autobile and agricultural films, rose by 0.4% to 21% in 2008.
The plastics bodies said in a statement that it was struggling to cope with falling demand for plastics and falling virgin material prices. It said it would like to see more legislation to boost green procurement and innovation and provide incentives for energy efficiency.
MEP for the North West of England Sajjad Karim supports the industry on this issue. "The plastics industry needs support in these times of crisis, not only for the benefit of its 1.6m employees, but also for the environment," he said.
The UK collected around 238,000 tonnes of plastics packaging for recycling in 2008 of which 90% was bottles, according to recycling charity Recoup.
Kerbside bottle collection tonnages increased by 19% compared to 2007, although still less than 40% of bottles used in the UK are not recycled. |
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At the heart of the food-grade plastic push
Josh Brooks, Packaging News, 25 November 2008
In the UK, plastic recyclate has been unsuitable for the hygiene-intensive world of food packaging, but all that is set to change with the opening of Closed Loop's behemoth London plant, says Josh Brook
The drizzly docks of Dagenham, on the cusp between east London proper and the start of the Thames estuary, could never be described as one of the capital's beauty spots. But visitors would be wrong to assume that the grey industrial units that characterise the area, once best known as the location of car manufacturer Ford's UK factory, are just churning out greenhouse gases to spoil the city's environment.
In fact, one of the leading lights of plastic packaging's eco-revolution has made Dagenham docks its home. In one of those newly built units, Closed Loop London will, any day now, start up a production line that will recycle plastic bottles into material that can be used again in food packaging. It's a huge leap forward – until now, plastic recyclate produced in this country has only been suitable for less hygiene-intensive uses such as in construction or non-food packaging.
Food-grade recycled PET and HDPE are being taken very seriously. Major bottle producers and buyers including Coca-Cola, Nampak Plastics and Marks & Spencer are among buyers of Closed Loop's material. Other recyclers, most notably AWS Ecoplastics, are making similar strides to Closed Loop. And major brands such as smoothie maker Innocent Drinks and Ribena, owned by Procter & Gamble, have already switched to bottles made from recycled PET sourced outside the UK.
Strength to strength
When I visit Dagenham, Chris Dow, Closed Loop's hugely enthusiastic managing director, is in a good mood. He has just received an inquiry about using recycled PET bottles from a UK-based wine producer. "This is great," he says, showing me his Blackberry. "It goes to show rPET has a lot to look forward to. I'm bloody excited to be part of it."
Dow has every reason to be feeling pleased with himself. The company has just been voted UK Waste Management Company of the Year by readers of Packaging News. The £12m Dagenham factory is very nearly ready to begin production – all its 35,000-tonne annual output is sold already. What's more, 70% of the output of the second planned site in Deeside, north Wales, is already sold, too.
The start of production at Closed Loop London is a milestone in the firm's history and Dow's plans. In his native Australia, Closed Loop began life as part of packaging giant Visy's events division. Following a buyout, the firm came to prominence at the 2000 Sydney Olympics when it collected and recycled the athletes' drinks bottles.
By 2004, the company was ready to expand into the UK market and, in March of that year, Dow founded the UK business. Backing from private equity eco-investor Foresight was secured at the start of 2007, and the company got the keys to the Dagenham building in January this year.
Next on the agenda is to find a site for a third factory. Dow says he is looking in Scotland, the north-east and the Midlands. Start-up in Deeside is planned for late 2009. With the third factory and another two planned, how far can plastics recycling go? "If the bottles are there and we can keep selling as we are, we will keep building. The UK is at 34% [collection of PET
and HDPE bottles] now. I can see us getting to 70%," he predicts. "In fact, you can see the day when you have just a wet bin in the kitchen and one for everything else."
Today, though, Dow is more concerned with the coming start-up of the Dagenham plant with its array of giant conveyors, trammels, plastics sorters, cutters, furnaces and cleaners. Walking around the plant, Dow's fascination with the process becomes evident – his description of a plastic bottle's journey from its arrival in a bale of HDPE or PET bottles to its departure as thousands of tiny chips of food-grade plastic is peppered with colourful language and the odd "wow!".
He says that visitors, too, often share his excitement – particularly among packaging designers, who, he says, are key to the whole industry's environmental struggle. "We've had designers come here who have been moved by the experience," he says. "That's what will help us win the war."
Looking ahead
Currently, the other war in recycling is the collapse in prices for recyclable waste. In the case of plastics, the drop this year has been triggered by a collapse in demand from China.
This could be seen as good news for Closed Loop – after all, input prices are rock-bottom – but Dow argues that continued low prices are not healthy for anyone in the recycling market.
He also takes a philosophical view where many have cried scandal at the UK recycling market's reliance on sales to the Far East. "China has given the UK the opportunity to develop its infrastructure [for collecting plastics] in a rational manner," he says. "It's given us time. But the crucial thing is that in the future every country will have to take responsibility for its own waste."
A third challenge, Dow says, is the growth in the use of plastics based either on additives or on GM crops – especially PLA bottles, which, he claims, create black specks if they manage to make their way through a PET or HDPE recycling plant and can weaken the polymer. "PVC and PLA both have a place but it's not in the bottle market," he says. "The only home for PLA bottles is in landfill."
There will be those who disagree with Dow on this last point. But it's hard to argue with his energy for and commitment to developing the plastics recycling infrastructure. And if he goes ahead with all five factories, perhaps a little bit more of the UK's environment will be kept a little bit more beautiful. Just don't expect the buildings to be pretty.
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Ciba focuses on adding appeal to bottles
Jane Ellis, packagingnews.co.uk, 19 March 2008
Ciba will focus on how colour and transparency can add appeal to packaging at Interpack in April.
The Swiss speciality chemicals company will show how shimmer, shine and sparkle can be added to plastic bottles using its Xymara Nordic effects, and how they can be given
clarity and protection with Ciba Irgaclear XT 386 and Shelfplus.
The firm will also show the latest version of its OnVu time-temperature indicator labels called OnVu Logistics.
This uses a colour-coded system to monitor and display time and temperature conditions at pre-defined points within the supply chain for chilled products such as meat, fish,
poultry, processed fruit and vegetables, dairy produce and ready meals.
Further features will be Ciba ColorViz systems for controlling colour from measurement to 3D visualisation, and the latest special effects possible with MetalFX, the technology
in which the firm bought an 80% stake in 2006.
Ciba will be on stand E17 in Hall 10 and stand C14 in Hall 14 at the Messe Düsseldorf.
Interpack runs from 24 to 30 April. |
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Ciba launches pearlescent treatment for plastics
Liz Wells, packagingnews.co.uk, 29 April 2008
Ciba, the Swiss chemical company, has introduced a range of anti-yellowing pearlescent surface treatments for plastics at Interpack 2008.
Ciba’s XYMARA XPS pearlescent effects are designed to enhance the appearance and prolong the life of plastic objects, including jars and cosmetic bottles.
The treatment uses varying particle sizes to enable different application requirements to be met: small particles give a gentle, silk-like sheen, while large particles impart
stronger, glitter effects.
Nicole End, marketing manager of consumer goods in Ciba’s plastics business line, said: “Conventional mica-based pearl pigments tend to cause yellowing of plastic following
exposure to light. We have developed a surface treatment that stabilises pearlescent pigments and inhibits yellowing, adding to the appeal of numerous items and extending their
lifetime.”
The Ciba range of pearlescent effects includes silver, gold and bronze.
Ciba is also showing its Colorviz Color Presenter software, which aims to help communication between packaging designers and colour producers.
The 3D software system works on instrumentally measured colours from colour suppliers, allowing CAD design visualisation that takes into account the actual colourants used. |
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Absolut launches bottle-shaped promotional pack
Jill Park, packagingnews.co.uk, 17 May 2010
Pernod Ricard's new Absolut Naturals range is being sold in trial size packs alongside the brand's original vodka as a promotion.
The 70cl Absolut Vodka original is being sold with a 5cl Absolut Pears bottle from the Naturals range in a plastic pack shaped like an Absolut bottle.
Consumers are able to view the two bottles, the smaller of which sits at the bottom of the pack, through the plastic outer packaging.
Swedish design agency Family Business in Stockholm designed the outer pack for Absolut.
Absolut Naturals are made from 100% natural ingredients and are available in nine flavours: pears, raspberry, citron, vanilia, apeach, kurant, mandarin, pepper and ruby red.
"With its innovative and striking design, the Absolut vodka original and pears pack is a clear example of the Absolut belief that 'doing things differently leads to something exceptional'," said head of vodka at Pernod Ricard UK Mark Hamilton.
Pernod Ricard is part of the Pernod Ricard Group, which owns Chivas Regal, Havana Club and Jacob's Creek, amongst others. |
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Wrap aims to improve HDPE milk bottle recycling
Simeon Goldstein, packagingnews.co.uk, 19 August 2008
The Waste and Resources Action Programme is looking to improve the recycling of HDPE milk bottles by supporting the production of non-contaminant labels, inks and adhesives.
Wrap is inviting tenders from firms to develop a cost-effective system that it wants at least 50% of milk industry bottle capacity to be using by 2011.
Paul Davidson, Wrap's plastics sector manager, said: "A successful system will not only improve the quality of recycled polymer, but it will also enable new milk bottles to be manufacturered with a higher recycled content in closed-loop systems."
Wrap's project will include an evaluation of economic and environmental viability followed by large-scale trials of the developed system. |
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Sidel tackles rugby-shaped bottle work
Simeon Goldstein, packagingnews.co.uk, 27 July 2007
Sidel has produced a water bottle shaped like a rugby ball for this year's World Cup in France.
The company, part of packaging giant Tetra Laval, said the oval-shaped 750ml PET bottle, which stands on a kicking tee, had an authentic look with 10,000 dimples on four panels, stitching and even an inflation valve.
To avoid distorting the shape of the ball, the label for Eaux minerals d'Alet has been placed under the bottle.
The bottle will be sold at major French retailers during the World Cup, which runs from 7 September to 20 October.
Sidel manufactures glass and plastic packaging for liquid products. |
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