Less plastic, recycled plastic rewarded in packaging awards

In the 22^nd edition, winners in DuPont Packaging & Industrial Polymers' Awards for Packaging Innovation shared some common themes: less is more and old (recycled) is new when it comes to material. The 16 winners were chosen from 160 entries that came to DuPont from around the world, with sustainability through resource reduction, reuse, or both, prevalent.

Clorox and Nordenia were recognized for replacing a polypropylene (PP) pail for cat litter with a flexible bag, cutting packaging materials by nearly 80%. Procter & Gamble (P&G) needed new machinery for the new packaging used in its Always Feminine Products, switching from wicketed polyethylene (PE) bags to continuous flow wrapping technology that cut the use of PE by 25% and created an 80% reduction in pack material warehouse space needed.

2010 DuPont Packaging Innovation winners.

P&G, along with Alpla, Tech Group, and Webb deVlam Industrial Designers, was also recognized for its new Scope Outlast polyethylene terephthalate (PET) bottle. In addition to a new bottle shape and closure, the bottle uses 20% less PET. Targeting the market for wine served in recreational and outdoor venues, Copa di Vino, Quart Vin, and Resilux America LLC were recognized for their new single-serve plastics wine glass/bottles. Offering a one year-shelf life, the new concept represents a 50% reduction in packaging waste, with a smaller carbon footprint since the plastic used is 30% lighter than glass.

Ethafoam HRC plank from Sealed Air and Austin Foam Plastics is a cell PE foam made from 65% recycled content that's also lighter than the material previously considered. To capture PE foam for recycling, a closed-loop recovery scheme was developed to enable collection, sorting, transporting, and reprocessing. An anti-fog shrink film for modified atmosphere packaging from Sealed Air enables film-to-meat contact with reduced pack volume, without discoloring the meat. The company's Grip and Tear bag also received an award for its combination of the superior shrink, toughness, and oxygen barrier properties found in a traditional vacuum-shrink bags, with the addition of an easy-open feature.

A shelf-stable design for single-serve meals, which separates meal components, was also awarded a prize. Berry Plastics, ConAgra, Rexam, and IDEO collaborated on the Healthy Choice Fresh Mixers helps ensure greater quality in terms of taste, texture, and nutrition. In transport, a new inside injection foaming process that enables highly durable plastic to replace wood for industrial pallets was awarded a prize. The PP pallets from FEMSA and Sosa Tech Advisors help Mexico address the country's lack of sustainable wood production, which can lead to deforestation issues. Composed entirely from PP, the pallets have an expected six-year lifetime, versus three years for typical injection PP pallets or two years for wooden ones.

Kelloggs, along with Positive Packaging, developed a metalized film laminate with oxygen barrier to address issues with off-gassing of cornflakes in the Indian market where high humidity is an issue. This development allowed the company to stop importing the previous structure. A new detergent-dispensing system that automatically releases product for 12 washes without refilling was recognized. Made with PET blister packs which are composed by 70% post-consumer recycled PET, the package from Finish Quantumatic and Reckitt Benckiser is sold into the Polish market.

Two previously publicized developments were also recognized: Frito-Lay North America's fully compostable Sunchips bags and Coca-Cola's Plant Bottle. The bag uses renewable polylactic acid (PLA) resin in its design and allows for new disposal options such as composting, which diverts packaging from the landfill. The bottle is based 30% from plant-derived renewable material, with sugar-cane monoethylene glycol replacing petroleum-based feedstocks.