Recycled PET packaging offers businesses looking to reduce their carbon footprint an excellent solution. As one of the few plastics that can be recycled back into its original state, maintaining structural integrity and almost glass-like transparency, PET plastic can be recycled back into its original format with ease.
At its heart, mechanical recycling involves flake sorting, near-infrared identification and separations, colour recognition, density separations, flotation/sinking density separations and removal of labels by elutriation.
It’s easy to recycle
Plastic is an extremely useful material with various applications, but when recycled incorrectly, it can pose health hazards and pollute the environment. Recyclable PET packaging can be used for producing clothing and shoes and requires less energy production than new plastics to reduce landfills and ocean waste while having less of an environmental impact than glass or aluminium bottles.
The recyclability of PET plastic depends primarily on its design and manufacturing process. Adhesives that cannot easily be separated from bottles can clog recycling machinery, decreasing the quality of reprocessed PET (rPET). Furthermore, before recycling begins, PET must be thoroughly cleaned to remove contaminants such as food residues, lubricants or caps, which could hinder recycling operations.
Some states have implemented deposit-return systems, offering consumers financial incentives for recycling. It helps increase the consistency of the collection stream and quality of rPET; additionally, better traceability increases recyclability.
PET bottles are among the most widely recycled types of #1 plastics in the US, while other forms, such as thermoformed containers, clamshells and trays, have lower recycling rates due to differing chemical composition and melting point, thus preventing them from being placed into curbside recycling bins together with bottles.
It’s a renewable resource.
Recycled PET plastic can help us lessen our dependence on oil and other non-renewable resources, providing a sustainable packaging option that won't compromise its transparency or durability. Furthermore, its production requires less energy than new plastics do.
Most consumers can easily recycle PET bottles through curbside recycling programs; however, the PET recycling stream may become polluted with materials such as HDPE (high-density polyethylene), paper and polyvinyl chloride from container closures and labels and dirt from product residues or unintentionally added substances that compromise its quality and reduce its use. In increasing quality, Recyclable PET packaging production should consider minimising printing on their products while using minimal surface area to facilitate optical sorting at Material Retrieval Facilities (MRFs).
After recycling, rPET can be reused to produce containers or bottle caps as well as blended into products made with virgin PET. Furthermore, it can also be made into polyester staple fibres and filaments used in clothing, carpeting, geotextiles and roof insulation - one of the most sustainable packaging solutions on the market.
It’s safe
PET plastic is an inert, non-reactive and shatterproof plastic commonly used for food packaging and bottles. PET complies with EU/NSF/FDA standards and HPP, an HPP being heat free form of pasteurisation. Furthermore, its lightweight construction, strength and resistance to high temperatures make it suitable for high-temperature environments - unlike glass and metal, which cannot be recycled after only limited reuse, its multi-stage production process enables endless recycling with no loss in quality over time.
However, PET containers must be thoroughly cleaned and dried prior to recycling them in order to prevent food particles or liquids from contaminating other batches of recyclable plastic and sending it straight into landfills rather than being recycled.
Natural mineral and spring water producers tend to use 100% recyclable PET packaging as packaging, so your bottle of hydration should be safe to recycle. Thermoformed plastics require special handling in terms of collection - thus disqualifying them from curbside recycling programs but being accepted through deposit-return systems.
It’s affordable
PET bottles are one of the primary recyclable plastics in both Europe and North America due to their lightweight yet sturdy nature and relatively affordable cost. Their lightness also makes them convenient for consumers on the go as it reduces chances of breakage; in addition, manufacturing takes significantly less energy, thus decreasing carbon emissions.
Establishing a sustainable supply chain for PET products may seem impossible, but it is possible. Simply by labelling products properly and applying design standards that make products more recyclable, you can help decrease the number of PET bottles sent directly to landfills.
Label your products carefully so they cover only a minimal surface area to aid optical sorting at MRFs. In addition, clear and free-from-contamination labels should also be positioned correctly, as lacquers or ink bonding agents can have detrimental effects on recycled product quality. Also, avoid multiple colours and printing techniques that bleed onto a substrate; this will prevent contamination of other parts of the package.