European Parliament’s waste directive rapporteur seeks delays on binding food waste targets

The European Parliament’s Waste Framework Directive rapporteur has proposed postponing targets for food waste prevention by several years in a move that has frustrated environmental campaigners, said Packagingonline.

The recently released draft report also suggests changing the definition of “recycling” to include energy recovery.

Zero Waste Europe has dismissed the proposal by the rapporteur to label waste-to-fuel as “recycling” as “truly bizarre.” In general, the circular economy organization recommends sorting waste before stabilization (material recovery and biological treatment).

“If the EU is serious about the circular economy, burning waste can never be acceptable, neither in incinerators nor as fuel after conversion,” says Theresa Morsen, waste and resources policy officer at Zero Waste Europe.

The rapporteur’s amendment reads: “By December 31, 2025, the Commission shall analyze technologies for producing alternative fuels, including from waste. Based on this analysis, the Commission shall, where appropriate, adopt a legislative proposal to change the definition of recycling to include the production of fuel products from materials, including waste.”

We remind, Coca-Cola India and Coca-Cola Philippines are taking steps to promote a circular economy for plastic packaging by introducing 100% recycled PET (rPET) beverage bottles. The Coca–Cola Company (TCCC) now offers 100% rPET bottles in over 40 markets, accelerating its “World Without Waste” goal of making bottles with 50% recycled content by 2030.

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The Vinyl Institute announced the initiation of Viability, the first grant program aimed at promoting recycling of post-consumer PVC, as per Plastics Technology

Up to $1 million in funds will be granted each year over the next three years from four PVC resin manufacturers in the U.S.: Formosa, Oxy, Shintech, and Westlake.

Individual grants issued through the Viability program are available to qualifying industry collaborations such as trade associations, material recovery facilities, construction and demolition waste facilities, recyclers, or colleges and universities in amounts up to $500,000. The funds may be used for the purchase of equipment, process investments, research and development, educational programs, and program management that supports long-lasting and sustainable recycling of vinyl products. A seven-member grant committee of the Vinyl Institute will choose recipients of the grants.

The first round of grant applications is due on March 1, 2023. The Vinyl Institute will announce the awarding of grants no later than 60 days after a grant application deadline.

The Vinyl Institute is a trade organization representing PVC manufacturers. The organization was established in 1982. Last year, the institute published a directory to help consumers find locations that accept PVC materials for recycling.

We remind, Kem One, a chlor-alkali producer, will convert all production at its plant in Fos, France from diaphragm to membrane-based production, said the company. The conversion will occur in the fourth quarter of 2024; the plant will be shut down for two months, according to the source.

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Revalyu Resources has broken ground on its $200m polyethylene terephthalate (PET) recycling plant in Statesboro, Georgia, the German producer said this week, said Petnology.

The plant is expected to have a recycling capacity of 90,000 tonnes/year (200m lb/year) of post-consumer PET plastic. Construction is expected to be completed in the third quarter of 2025, said the company.

Once functioning at full capacity, the facility is expected to employ 121 workers. Revalyu recycles PET with its own proprietary technology based on glycolysis.

“Compared to conventional PET, Revalyu’s R-PET [recycled PET] is produced using 75% less water, 91% less energy, and saves around 0.7 barrels of oil and 0.2 cubic metres of landfill space per 2000 pounds of PET recycled,” the company said.

We remind, Neste, a Finnish oil company, has concluded a series of processing runs with liquefied waste plastic at its refinery in Porvoo. The purpose of the runs is to better characterize the behavior of the liquefied waste plastic through the chemical recycling process. The end product, called Neste RE, is a raw material for production of new plastic and a replacement for fossil-based material.

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For packaging manufacturers, the need to use a range of different heat seal coatings to ensure optimal performance and safety can add considerable cost and complexity to production, supply chains and inventories, said Henkel.

With the development of Loctite Liofol HS 1181, Henkel is helping brands and manufacturers take on these challenges with a universal, high-performing heat seal coating for sealing aluminum foil or polyester film to plastic substrates.

Containing improved formulations, food safe and compliant with the highest safety standards, Loctite Liofol HS 1181 provides a universal ready-to-use solution that eliminates the need for multiple coatings. It is ideal for applications like plastic coffee capsules, peelable dairy lidding, water bins and pharmaceutical blister packaging. The new heat seal coating is designed to provide strong sealing and hot tack properties for aluminum foil and polyester film and is sealable to various plastic substrates including PS, PP, PET, PE and PVC. At low coating weights, Loctite Liofol HS 1181 provides a peelable seal. The solution doesn’t contain Chlorine and Epoxy to ensure a high level of standards compliance for food contact. This ensures suitability for the manufacture of food packaging materials under the applicable FDA and EC-provisions.

“Loctite Liofol HS 1181 demonstrates our commitment to realize entirely new possibilities through innovation while ending previously unavoidable compromises,” explains Davide Coppola, Senior Business Development Manager at Henkel. “It brings unprecedented flexibility to manufacturers that can use the same heat seal solution for multiple packaging applications and thereby minimize cost and complexity. At the same time, this universal sealing product has been formulated with safer chemicals to provide consumers with safer food packaging that they can trust. Hence, it is a truly universal solution.”

We remind, Henkel launches first silicone-free multifunctional EMI thermal gap pad. As modern vehicles become increasingly reliant on advanced ADAS and telematics systems, OEMs are seeking to ensure the long-term reliability and performance of these mission-critical components by preventing unintended cross-talk.

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UPM Biochemicals announced on 28 Sep 2023 that it has selected Brenntag SE, the global market leader in chemicals and ingredients distribution, as sole distributor of its sustainable bio-monoethylene glycol (BioMEG) UPM BioPura in Europe, said the company.

The new distribution agreement will bring UPM BioPura to market, unlocking further commercial opportunities, while accelerating the introduction of sustainable forest-sourced materials into the chemical sector. UPM invests EUR 1180 M to build the world's first industrial scale biorefinery in Leuna, Germany, where sustainably sourced, certified hardwood will be converted into next generation biochemicals that will enable the vital shift away from fossil-based to renewable materials across a wide range of industries.

The Leuna biorefinery is part of a broader growth area, UPM Biorefining, focused on scaling refineries producing a variety of renewable fuels and chemicals made from sustainable biomass. UPM has already signed multiple distribution agreements in the past year to market UPM BioMotion Renewable Functional Fillers (RFF), another product within the innovative new category of bio-based products.

UPM BioPura will be produced from certified hardwood obtained from regional forests around Leuna. The biomass does not compete with food resources and will provide manufacturers with a viable option to progress towards their net zero targets and significantly reduce their scope 3 emissions by switching effortlessly from fossil-based ingredients to a renewable, drop-in solution.

We remind, UPM Raflatac, a global supplier of self-adhesive paper and film products, will showcase their more sustainable sticky notes products at the Insights-X stationery expo in Nuremberg, Germany on 11-14 October 2023. UPM Raflatac will be participating in the expo under the Global Notes by UPM Raflatac brand name after acquiring the AMC AG and the Global Notes brand in 2022.

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