Mondi and Werner & Mertz has announced that it will introduce a 100% recyclable pouch with detachable decorative panels to replace conventional flexible packaging. The pouch is made from a mono-polyethylene, which makes it suitable for recycling. It will be used for Germany’s Werner & Mertz’s sustainable cleaning products brand Frosch. This year’s REB Market Intelligence Summit is taking place on 2 October and will look at end destinations for materials. Find out more here This design is the result of a collaboration by Werner & Mertz, Mondi, EPEA Switzerland (Cradle to Cradle), Der Grüne Punkt – Duales System Deutschland and Institut cyclos-HTP. The companies said that the design was not about developing flexible plastic packaging that is not only recyclable, but to “reverse-engineer” it by creating packaging fit for every stage of the recycling process. Mondi manager technical services Jens Kösters said: “Our collaboration with Werner & Mertz shows, in the best possible way, how challenges can become solutions. We worked our way through an ‘innovation funnel’— testing different materials until we arrived at a designed-for-recycling concept that convinced everyone at each point of the value chain. Furthermore, the concept offers clear benefits related to sealing strength and maximum filling volume.” The pouch has two layers to solve the issue of recycling printed plastic materials. Werner & Mertz head of packaging development Immo Sander said: “We dress the pouch up in an eye-catching ‘outer garment’ that is printed with brand design on the front and consumer info on the back. When the pouch is empty, we ‘undress’ it automatically by shredding and sorting the two components into separate recycling streams.” The spout and cap are also made of polyethylene ensuring the recycled material is equal in quality to the original material.
Austrian manufacturing company Mondi has partnered with Germany’s Werner & Mertz and several other firms to develop a fully recyclable plastic pouch. The collaborative effort reverse-engineered the packaging to ensure it was fit for recycling at every stage, while the innovative design comprises a mono-polyethylene pouch and an outer layer on which a product's branding is printed. The two components, as well as the polyethylene spout and cap, can all be separated and recycled. In addition to its environmental benefits, this new product will also help reduce waste in landfills.