03 October 2022
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Packaging companies seek to come up with compostable alternatives.
PACKAGING manufacturers in Britain have been facing some steep challenges in creating something sustainable for the large quantity of potato-based snacks consumed annually in the nation, as pressure to 'go green' mounts.
Britain is the third highest consumer of crisps and other salty snacks worldwide, eating six billion packets each year.
The salt and oil content present in these products acts as a corrosive that makes it very hard to package them in compostable materials, according to manufacturers.
According to the climate action body WRAP, the UK disposes of 290,000 tonnes of plastic bags and wrapping each year, which includes crisp packets. Only 6% of this is being recycled, with the remainder ending up in general waste and landfill.
At the recent London Packaging Week, manufacturer TIPA unveiled a solution it is putting forward for suppliers of processed potato snacks.
The packaging manufacturer claims its new 312MET film has superior sealing properties and a particularly high barrier that enables quick converting without the need for an additional sealing layer, making it a thinner product which is difficult to come by in the industry currently.
The launch marks the latest addition to a range of packaging the company has designed to substitute conventional plastic that can decompose in compost, leaving no waste behind.
TIPA’s Chief Technology Officer, Dr Eli Lancry, said the film performs just like traditional plastic but has an extremely high barrier.
Photo: Mustafa Bashari
