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Andrea Morandini in EcoeFISHent lab

Image: AIMPLAS

AIMPLAS Working to Develop Valuable Packaging Applications From Fish-Processing Waste

24.09.2024

AIMPLAS, a Valencia, Spain-based research and technology center, is participating in a European project designed to develop an eco-friendly barrier coating for food packaging from fish gelatin as well as cosmetics packaging from waste fishing nets.
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Five brown eggs instead of six in an open egg carton on an orange background.

Image: Tanaonte/iStock

More transparency for hidden price increases

14.08.2024

Shopping for daily necessities has gotten expensive. But some products have become more expensive without a change in price – there is simply less content per package. Customers often do not notice this practice, called shrinkflation, to begin with. France and Hungary are now combatting this practice and obligating supermarkets to indicate hidden price increases.
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Several rolls of labels

Image: Securikett

Paper safety labels for recycling

14.02.2024

Products that are counterfeit or which have been tampered with cause large economic damage. Safety labels can help to guarantee the authenticity and integrity of goods, as when someone attempts to open the packaging, it leaves irreversible traces. When it comes to recyclability, however, these small labels are often not performing very well.
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View over Cairo

Image: unsplash/Jack Krier

The Resilient Rise of the Egyptian Packaging Sector in Challenging Times

12.12.2023

As an established sector, the Egyptian printing and packaging sector is faced with similar challenges to many industries in the local economy. However, the growing local consumer base, competitive business atmosphere, and solid international cooperation relations are strong indicators of a thriving sector capable of further development and innovation.
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Glass of beer and paper bottle

Image: Carlsberg

Inside Paboco’s Quest for the Ideal Paper Bottle

15.11.2023

Tim Silbermann, Paboco’s new 33-year-old CEO, is on a mission to help the Alpla-owned company develop a 100 percent bio-based, fully recyclable bottle. It currently is supplying customers such as Procter & Gamble, L’Oréal, Coca-Cola Co., Carlsberg, and Absolut Vodka and continues to strive for a viable all-paper bottle.
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Digitally watermarked yoghurt and kefir containers

Image: Aldi Süd Gruppe

Final testing stage for HolyGrail 2.0

14.11.2023

Digital watermarks could play a key role in the future when it comes to packaging recyclability. They are invisible to the human eye but carry a wealth of information. The HolyGrail 2.0 initiative aims to implement the technology for large-scale sorting of post-consumer waste, with plans for a test market in France in 2024. The final stage of testing has now begun.
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The compact På(fyll) containers stack neatly for both storage and transportation.

Image: Form Us With Love

Designing for Circular Consumer Goods Packaging

21.09.2023

Four Nordic companies partnered to create a new circular service for consumer packaged goods. Called På(fyll), it is an app-based subscription service for household products made by conglomerate Orkla. Honored recently by Fast Company, it uses specially designed reusable and recyclable HDPE containers and aims to reduce single-use packaging waste.
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Two plastic bottles with transparent label

Image: Dow

How labels are becoming more recyclable

12.09.2023

A world without labels? Inconceivable. Their endless variety of materials, shapes and functions help labels attract attention. But it should also be possible to separate them from their packaging again at the end of the packaging’s life in the interests of a circular economy. Recyclable solutions are on the way.
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Workers at BASF

Image: BASF

What are the environmental impacts of alternative raw materials?

12.09.2023

In mass balancing, chemically recycled or bio-based raw materials are input at the very beginning of plastics production and then computationally assigned to the end products. Using the example of flexible mozzarella packaging, a study investigated whether and how this procedure influences the life-cycle assessment of packaging produced from these raw materials.
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Oval labels printed with shiny bright metallic colours

Image: Actega

Sustainable print finishing

12.09.2023

Embossing, colour effects and particularly metallic sheens catch the eyes at points of sale. Finishing labels and folded boxes with conventional embossing foil, however, creates lots of film waste. But now an alternative, which allows metallic pigments to be applied selectively and cost-effectively and which consequently eliminates the need for plastic film, has arrived.
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Roll of adhesive tape over a cardboard box

Image: Futamura

Sustainable tamper-proofing

11.08.2023

When it comes to protecting valuable products from tampering and theft, the method often used is to apply adhesive tape that will leave permanent marks on the packaging if an attempt is made to open it. In addition to recyclable paper solutions, there are now compostable alternatives made from bio-based film.
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An icon showing a person disposing of waste

Image: Gary Chan/unsplash

Labels with separation information on packaging help the circular economy

13.06.2023

Efficient and consistent recycling is one of the pillars of a functioning circular economy in the packaging industry. Such recycling includes the correct separation of packaging so that it can be fed into its respective recycling stream. A survey has now shown that information about separation can play a decisive role for consumers.
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Product photo of the PaperX tube by Hoffmann Neopac

Image: Hoffmann Neopac

What are the benefits of paper tubes?

16.05.2023

Packaging is being viewed differently in these times of ever scarcer raw materials and increasing environmental issues. As are tubes. Some companies are placing their hopes on fibre-based solutions, e.g. paper. But are there only benefits to paper tubes?
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An arm with a hand in a rubber glove is holding a spray bottle.

Bild: jeshoots/unsplash

Better recycled material as a result of fewer fragrances

16.05.2023

Not all recycled materials are the same. That is because the quality of recycled plastics plays an important role en route to a circular economy. The Fraunhofer Institute LBF has consequently developed a method that removes problematic fragrances from packaging for detergents that is being recycled.
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WorldStar Award trophy

Since 1970, the WorldStar Awards have been conferred every year. (Image: WPO

Industry innovations in the spotlight

18.04.2023

Since 1970, the World Packaging Organization has annually awarded the WorldStar Awards. With this prize, WPO honours the achievements of the companies and developers in the industry. In 2023, this highly sought-after prize will be awarded during interpack.
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AI inspection system for lipsticks

Is automation the end-all and be-all? (Image: Rock'n Roll Monkey/unsplash)

Artificial intelligence for cosmetics packaging

10.03.2023

During the production of lipsticks, faults in the outer appearance can occur. To detect these, SEA Vision trusts an inspection system based on AI that is self-learning and thus continues to further improve inspections. The system was developed in cooperation with ARGO Vision.
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Close image of a toy robot

Is automation the end-all and be-all? (Image: Rock'n Roll Monkey/unsplash)

Where does automation help in packaging?

10.03.2023

Trend topic or permanent issue? Everybody is talking about automation. However, switching to fully automated packaging solutions is anything but a guarantee for success. Small and medium sized companies should consider several things before investing in large machinery.
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Several harvested sugar bundles lie on the ground.

Plastics can also be produced from fibre-based raw materials, for example from sugar cane. (Credit: Victoria Priessnitz/unsplash)

A bioplastic for every application

24.10.2022

Fossil plastics have a lot of advantages, but they are also said to be harmful to the environment. Bioplastics are an alternative for packaging manufacturers. They are just as versatile, but are made using renewable resources, and some are even compostable.
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Several small single-use bags

Photo: Kier In Sight / unsplash

Mono-material sachets

21.06.2022

For packaging made of plastic, their potential to be recycled is very important. Refilling systems save material. Mono-material sachets and bags also reduce the amount of material consumed, protect packaged goods and have practical uses for customers.
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A reusable glass bottle upright on the beach. Next to it lies a plastic bottle that is damaged in some places.

Image: Sea Me

Deposit systems for cosmetics packaging?

24.05.2022

On the beverage sector, deposit systems have been around for many years. Now, deposit systems are being introduced specifically for cosmetics packaging as well. A pilot project by Circleback is currently underway in Berlin, while Sea Me has introduced a reusable solution for cosmetics packaging with zerooo.
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A refill cap is inserted into a cosmetic jar.

Photo: Papacks

Refill and Reuse

16.03.2022

Most packaging is used once and then thrown away. However, a change in this trend is emerging: In addition to the use of recycled materials, new reuse and refill systems are becoming a particularly attractive alternative.
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One person holds shredded plastic

Photo: Borealis & Tomra

Goods in short supply but in high demand

10.02.2022

10.02.2022- Although the use of recycled plastics is an important pillar of the circular economy, the recyclate market is nearly empty as of the beginning of 2022. In future, standards are supposed to ensure the availability of a sufficient amount of recyclates with consistent quality in order to supplement new material.
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Lenor bottles with digital watermark

Image: P&G

Procter & Gamble is packaging the future

25.11.2021

What direction will packaging take? How can we meet the challenges of our times? These questions face small and major companies alike. At consumption goods giant Procter & Gamble, the future of packaging is in the hands of one man.
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94% of the material for the caps on CATRICE (cosnova) nail polish is created from the post-consumer recycled plastic Procyclen.

Photo: Cosnova / ALBA Group

cosnova implements post-consumer recycled material in packaging for its decorative cosmetics for the first time

25.05.2021

The cosmetics industry is using more and more recycled material for packaging, although government requirements are not yet concrete. In the process, individual manufacturers are developing their own standards and making them available to the entire industry. The use of post-consumer recyclate reduces CO2 production enormously.
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Thayers’ cosmetics bottles with red caps.

Photo: L’Oréal

Increasing recycling of cosmetics packaging

12.02.2021

The cosmetics group L’Oréal is striding into the future with new technology and an attention-grabbing recycling campaign with the objective of increasing recycling of cosmetics products and closing loops.
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NIVEA refill station

Photo: Nivea/dm-drogerie markt

Filling up packaging at refill stations

26.10.2020

In a variety of pilot projects, Henkel and Beiersdorf are testing refill stations for their products. In this way, the companies are seeking to contribute to more prudent use of resources and more recycling as well as to a closed-loop economy.
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TAM TAM PON tampon packaging

Photo: www.einhorn.my

A real stunner: Menstrual hygiene products

27.07.2020

Menstrual hygiene products: They hadn’t received much attention up until now, but sustainable packaging designs and tax relief on personal care products has pushed the subject of periods into the spotlight.
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Two lipsticks without caps

Foto: Kjaer Weis

Refillable cosmetics are trending

25.05.2020

More and more frequently, consumers opt for refillable solutions that help them have a positive impact on the environment. When it comes to make-up and skincare products, the offer of refillable cosmetics is on the rise.
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The first prize in the “Household” category at the WorldStar Packaging Awards went to the Frosch stand-up pouch by Werner & Mertz and Mondi.

© Werner & Mertz

What is reverse engineering?

23.03.2020

Packaging innovations are increasingly based around closed circuits. Engineers are employing the principles of reverse engineering in packaging development. A current and prominent example of this is the stand-up pouch for Frosch liquid soap, produced by Werner & Mertz and Mondi.
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Paper-based cosmetic tubes and bottles from Seed Phytonutrients

© L‘Oréal

Cardboard-based cosmetic packaging

12.02.2020

Many industries are looking for sustainable packaging. Recyclable, organic-based or compostable. The next big trend: A new approach in the cosmetics industry - paper packaging for body care products.
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