For additives, pretty is no longer enough

Peter Prusak, head of North American packaging market segment at Clariant Masterbatches (McHenry, IL), says product marketers need packaging today that does more than just look attractive on the store shelf. Additives suppliers are developing value-added products designed to enhance product competitiveness.

Take for example Croda Polymer Additives (Goole, England). It has launched a new type of inorganic UV light absorber that it claims delivers superior UV protection and improved transparency compared to traditional nanopowders. Solasorb is based on ultrafine metal oxides that the company says provide stable dispersion delivery, low migration, and long-term protection. “By carefully controlling particle size, metal oxides can give good UV absorbance coupled with enhanced transparency,” says Adam Maltby, the company’s applications manager. “Usually particles in this range tend to re-agglomerate, then defract visible light, causing haze and poor clarity in plastics articles.”

Consumers appreciate that these bottles, processed with Clariant's CESA masterbatches, don't leave expensive product stuck on a package's interior walls.

Solasorb additives can reduce color change in cosmetic and personal care products, he says. In beverage containers they help prevent vitamin loss and the development of off-tastes and odors.

Clariant Masterbatches, known for colorants, sees masterbatches that not only provide special effects but also aid in packaging protection as key benefits for processors. “Companies in the personal care packaging market know Clariant for its visual solutions such as color and special effect masterbatches,” Prusak says. “That’s the visual effect, and it is critical to our customer’s success. However, product performance and protection, in addition to productivity improvements, are just as important to them.”

One such aid is found in the company’s CESA additive masterbatches. Prusak says shoppers are frustrated by not being able to get the last drop of lotion or make-up out of packaging and the product left in the container can be a problem when recycling. To the rescue come CESA-slip lubricants. Originally designed and used as processing aids, he says these lubricants have found a second life: they can be added to the interior layer of a container, where they limit the tendency of viscous liquids to cling to the package walls. —[email protected]