Circular economy in the food packaging, a term increasingly in vogue thanks to the rise of environmental awareness in society. But do you really know what the circular economy entails? What are the real benefits for the environment?
The circular economy is a production and consumption model that implies: sharing, renting, reusing, repairing, renewing and recycling existing materials and products as many times as possible to generate added value.
Circular economy in the food packaging, a strong investment is being made in R+D+ I to adapt the needs of society to the principles defended by the circular economy, and at Ecoplas we work so that the circular model is our motto.
Ecoplas has participated in many R +D+I projects. We highlight:
For Ecoplas, the concepts of reduce, reuse and recycle, defended by the circular economy, have become the pillars to continue on the path of growth and development of the company.
- Reduce:
-Elimination of cardboard boxes in Packaging
-Package wrapping with film made with Nanotechnology
-Coils of 1,500 meters
-Full Pallets (transport impact)
-Reduction of the weight of the inner tube by 50%
- Re-use:
-Use of recycled plastic tubes
- Recycle:
-Reuse of internal nets tubes.
Therefore, how has Ecoplas adapted to meet the requirements of the circular economy in the food packaging?
We observe it in its philosophy and commitment to the environment.
Ecoplas has internalized it in all its aspects: from the production and manufacturing phase to the management of its waste once its useful life ends.
The products manufactured by Ecoplas help reduce the C02 footprint of the transport parcel and the consumption of raw materials. And all processes are optimized to have the lowest energy consumption.
Likewise, Ecoplas has solar panel installations that produce the energy it uses in its manufacturing processes and, therefore, its energy consumption comes from renewable energy sources.
Ecoplas uses three types of materials in the manufacturing process of its meshes:
- Conventional: materials that are of fossil origin, are a commodity and therefore are cheap and in large quantities, and the technology is mature.
- Green: materials like green / bio PE, BioPP, have an identical chemical structure to their conventional “brothers”. The difference is in the origin of the raw material. In the Green, the raw material is of vegetable origin (sugar cane for example), and in the others, it is oil or natural gas. Since the chemical structure is identical, its behavior in nature is the same.
- Compostable: compostable materials are so due to their chemical structure, which allows them to be broken more easily, which is why they are compostable or biodegradable. These can be of fossil or renewable origin.
Finally, it is essential to know how these waste management processes are once the useful life of Ecoplas products has ended, and, depending on the raw materials with which they are made, we distinguish three processes:
- Recycling: The most famous, also known as mechanical recycling. Here the waste is crushed and transformed into pellets to be used in the manufacture of new products, 100% recycled or mixed with virgin pellets.
- Biodegradation: It is the most natural waste degradation process. The waste affected by the conditions of the environment where it is found (temperature, humidity, sun exposure, etc.) will gradually disappear from the environment with the help of microorganisms. Therefore, it is the appropriate process for biodegradable materials.
- Compostability: It is a waste management process where human intervention is required. A more controlled and faster process than biodegradation is developed, and the end result is the generation of compost or biogas. There are different compostability processes, the two most common being: industrial and domestic. The first of them is faster and due to the effect of humidity, temperature and air, it can produce in just weeks or a couple of months. While the domestic is a less controlled and long process that can take up to 5 months.