Neopac’s Recyclable Monomaterial Tube Uses PCR

Switzerland-based Hoffmann Neopac has launched a new range of recyclable, monomaterial tubes containing up to 60% food-grade recycled high-density polyethylene (rHDPE). The Polyfoil EcoPro barrier tubes are intended for personal-care and cosmetic products.

The tube body and shoulder are made with post-consumer recycled (PCR) resin, and the packaging is fully recyclable in the European Union (EU) HDPE recycling stream. The tubes have received product and technology approval from the EU’s RecyClass sustainability-verification group, plus a Suez Grade A rating.

The RecyClass HDPE Technical Committee assessed the tube’s recyclability using lab testing and stated in a Product Approval letter that Neopac’s “‘Polyfoil MMB Tube PF542/642’ product is fully compatible with colored HDPE recycling.”

RecyClass tested the rHDPE generated from recycling the tubes (sans caps) in “high-value application[s] such as HDPE bottles up to 25% concentration.”

Recycle-content recyclable tube offers sustainability without sacrificing functionality or looks.

The Polyfoil EcoPro tubes also use less material, with a body wall thickness of 0.35 mm — a 30% reduction vs. Neopac’s standard Polyfoil tubes.

In addition to sustainability features, the tubes offer good functionality; the rHDPE’s barrier properties protect the integrity of personal-care and beauty products filled into the tubes.

The new offering is available in diameters ranging from 30 mm to 50 mm, with volumes of 50 ml to 200 ml. The tubes can be topped with an HDPE flip-top cap or recycled polyethylene (rPE) screw cap.

Additionally, they are compatible with various decorating techniques, including inline digital and offset printing. Digital printing enables design variability and flexibility, including different languages, product variants, and limited-time promotions, with fast turnaround.

The Polyfoil EcoPro tube is the latest in Neopac’s sustainably focused EcoDesign product line, which includes the PaperX fiber-based tube, which significantly reduces plastic use and carbon footprint; the Sugarcane Tube, which is made from renewable raw materials; and the PICEA Tube, with 95% renewable material, including 9% spruce wood from sawmill waste.

PlasticsToday covered Neopac’s Eco-Stripped Tube, another EcoDesign product, in 2022.