The 29th edition of the OBAL ROKU (Packaging of the Year) competition also brought many innovative solutions that reflected the current trends in the packaging industry. Design, sustainability and technical processing were important criteria in the jury’s evaluation. Two sustainable packaging products from our subsidiary Chemosvit Folie were among the 38 award-winning exhibits, which have thus secured a ticket to the global WorldStar competition.
Recyclable PP packaging
The original polyolefin structure for packaging nuts, muesli and other dry mixtures contained varnish as an additional non-recyclable component. We followed the CEFLEX principles that govern the design of recyclable flexible films in creating the packaging solution.
We chose a duplex mono-material structure – both layers of the packaging are made of polypropylene (PP). We replaced the varnish with a matt film and kept two colours since reducing the colour number together with the percentage of colour coverage contributes to better recyclability of the packaging and higher quality of the recyclate. The transparent window, in turn, allows the end customer to see the packaged product.
The barrier layer enhances the protection of the packaged product mainly due to the high oxygen permeability barrier. The recyclable content in the structure is 94%, making the packaging suitable for the PP recycling stream.
PE monostructure barrier laminate
The customer’s nut and dry fruit packaging had a classic triplex structure consisting of polyester, aluminium and polyethylene. We replaced these layers with a duplex laminate made of one type of polymer – polyethylene (PE). This reduced the proportion of the non-recyclable content.
In this case, we also tried to follow the CEFLEX principles and design the design to have as little colour coverage as possible. The white appearance of the material allows for a reduction of 100% white printing ink, thus reducing the non-recyclable content in the laminate. In addition, we used energy-efficient and solvent-free EB offset printing.
Interestingly, the structure can be applied in two ways – we can supply it as a roll (if customers have their own packaging machines) or stand-up pouches. We have achieved the necessary material rigidity, which is not typical for polyethylene, by combining materials. This makes it possible to form a stand-up pouch that keeps its form.
The recyclable content in the laminate is 95%, which makes the packaging suitable for the PE recycling stream and the regranulate suitable for flexible film production.
Both of our winners can be used for dry food packaging along with other food segments. This competition has always been and continues to be an inspiration for us. It is also a reason for us to follow market developments, react to current trends in plastics and then translate them into concrete solutions for our customers that respect their needs.