Circular use of plastic food packaging

Coalition Food2Food 2.0 consists of more than 30 chain partners committed to the circular use of plastic. The focus is on an industrial test of CurvCode, a Dutch innovation for separating plastics from waste streams. 

Recycling single-use food packaging is an urgent social problem. These packages represent about 40% of the plastic volume in the Netherlands. They are almost entirely produced from fossil raw materials (oil). Reuse leads to less CO2 emissions. In 2019, Plastic Pact NL asked the 'Food2Food' project group to investigate which technologies are suitable for efficiently separating plastics from waste streams. It was determined that the digital watermark CurvCode has a lot of potential. CurvCode is a digital watermark developed by technology company FiliGrade from Eindhoven.

High-quality sorting

The use of recycled plastic for the production of plastic food packaging requires approval from the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA). They have strict requirements for food packaging. Recycled plastic must meet high quality standards. High-quality sorting is an important condition for meeting the EFSA requirements. And thus for the transition to a circular plastic chain.

CurvCode

During the test programme, CurvCode's operation will be validated under industrial conditions. The test programme is expected to be completed in the second quarter of 2022. The proposals for commercial introduction should also be ready by then. In addition, research is taking place into the operational and financial effects of the transition to a circular plastic chain. Concrete details are being worked out on how this new technique can grow towards market acceptance and commercial applications. The coalition wants to make a tangible contribution to solving the plastic problem.

This project is one of five national 'Moonshot' breakthrough projects that are supported annually by the Acceleration House. The Acceleration House is a partnership of VNO-NCW, MKB-Nederland, the Ministry of Infrastructure and Water Management, MVO Nederland and the Groene Brein. The project is led by an independent project leader, Prof. Dr. Roland ten Klooster.

Participating parties: 

Avery Dennison, Bordex Packaging, Bliston Packaging, Bond Seafood, Cumapol/Cure, Dijkstra Plastics, FiliGrade Sustainable Watermarks, FrieslandCampina, Guillin, Haval, Hordijk Verpakkingen, Indorama/Wellman Recycling, Jumbo, Klöckner Pentaplast, Kornelis Caps and Closures, Meulendijks Packaging, Multivac, NNZ, Oerlemans Packaging Group, Paardekooper, Plato Product Consultants / University of Twente, Signature Foods, SPAR, Terbeke, TNOBrightlands, Material Center, Unilever, Veolia, Verstappen Advanced Packaging and Wageningen University & Research.

www.filigrade.com