We have talked a lot about this on YODL in recent weeks: plastic packaging is a major environmental issue, particularly because it is almost everlasting. While many companies are working hard to find alternatives to this near-perfect material for food, others are instead looking for ways to make it more sustainable.
When recently asked about the future of plastic in food packaging, Simon Chrétien, General Manager of Alliance Polymères Québec, is clear: Plastic is an essential material for the food industry and provides, and will continue to provide, major benefits to it in the future. The challenge is to ensure intelligent sourcing based on an eco-design approach, combined with an effective recovery stream and therefore sound end-of-life management of products.
And this recovery and revalorisation stream is precisely beginning to take shape. The best-known example is undoubtedly Loop Industries,a company founded in Quebec in 2014 with the mission of accelerating the transition towards a circular plastics economy. Loop Industries’ experts have developed an innovative technology that breaks down PET plastic and polyester fibres into their base components, before recreating virgin-quality material with no loss of quality. In September 2021, Evian announced the launch of a prototype plastic bottle made using Loop Industries’ technology, and more recently Loop announced a commercial supply agreement with Danone and the construction of a plant in Europe. We can therefore expect to see plastic packaging identified as “Loop” appearing soon!
Another area of research that is bubbling with innovation is making plastic packaging easier to recycle. From creating resins to designing packaging, and from label management to sorting used materials, every aspect of plastic packaging is being studied and is the subject of research projects around the world.
In Canada alone, the plastics industry is a major contributor to the local economy, with annual revenues of nearly $29 billion. The Plastics Division of the Chemistry Industry Association of Canada is particularly active in research and development for innovations that make plastic packaging sustainable. We will be speaking with its Executive Vice-President, Ms Isabelle Des Chênes, next week. Join us to learn more about the future of plastic in food packaging!
