WANT TO ACHIEVE STORE DROP-OFF RECYCLABILITY FOR YOUR PACKAGING?

While many brand owners work to address consumers’ package sustainability demands, achieve store drop-off recyclability and implement new programs and processes, pressure is rising to deliver on their initiatives and prove results. This pressure is due in large part to the following: 

• Non-governmental organizations (NGO) are holding brand owners accountable for sustainability initiatives they advertise to consumers. In particular, some private organizations have started tracking brand owners’ progress to ensure they accomplish their sustainability goals by 2025.  
• Packaging components with potential recyclability are now monitored, regardless of end use. This means every component of a package, including the adhesive, must be compatible to be considered recyclable.  
• Extended producer responsibility (EPR) regulations will be implementing a tax for brand owners not selling products in sustainable packaging. If the brand owners use materials that are recyclable, they will not have to pay this tax. However, this tax varies state to state within the U.S. as lawmakers make their own decisions on when they will implement these regulations. 

This means brand owners will look to their converters to ensure packaging is recyclable and help them address these pressures. For flexible film packaging, one way to do this is by developing packaging that’s approved for store drop-off recycling. However, it can be challenging for converters to address these pressures and accomplish store drop-off recyclability. Gain insight into why it’s challenging and how the right adhesives can help converters make it easy to address the sustainability pressures and improve packaging’s recyclability levels. 

Right now the flexible package recycling infrastructure is still developing, which makes it challenging for the market to grow at a fast rate. The following driving forces also add pressure for brands and converters to develop packages with store drop-off recyclability at a timely rate while keeping up with other important needs: 

Impact of Brand Owners’ Tracked Progression  

Converters understand that while private NGOs are tracking brand owners’ progression toward fulfilling their sustainability commitments to consumers, these metrics reflect converters’ efforts as well. This is because brand owners partner with converters to determine the best packaging choices. So, if one partner is not publicly showing significant strides towards sustainable packaging goals, it may affect the entire value chain of converters, suppliers and brand owners. Therefore, they must work together to offer improved sustainability that is noteworthy to advertise.  

Improving Compatibility in Packaging Formats 

There is also more pressure to find a recyclable solution as the Association of Plastic Recyclers now monitors the amount of post-consumer recycled materials (PCR) usage in packaging, including the chosen adhesive technology. In the past, adhesives weren’t monitored, and it didn’t matter which adhesive technology was used to bond polyethylene print web and sealant web together. However, it’s become clear that functional components such as adhesives, inks and coatings can impact the PCR stream by causing gels, loss of mechanical properties and visual defects. To improve the stream and more easily use PCR resins in a circular loop without deformities, these functional components must be designed to be as compatible as possible with polyethylene, polypropylene and their respective recycling streams.  

Incorporating PCRs into certain flexible packaging types for store drop-off recycling programs can be difficult in general. There is a low quantity of FDA-approved PCR available for polyethylene packaging. Therefore, it’s important to ensure the available PCR film (and FDA-certified) is of high quality.  

Impact of the EPR Regulations and Proposed Tax 

In the U.S., EPR regulations are such that each U.S. state can determine how to handle packaging disposal. This can create complications for brand owners trying to sell their products in numerous states, as regulations may differ in each state or even have yet to be in place. Further, it can complicate how converters create their packaging if there are differing rules on materials state to state. Since many brand owners rely on converters to ensure packaging is sustainable and may not know what is causing their product to not be recyclable, they may want converters to cover the EPR regulation tax if their packaging doesn’t meet the requirement to avoid it. This creates pressure on converters to produce recyclable packaging in a timely manner as both the regulations and taxing could vary by state. 

To date, adhesives are not as heavily focused on as other materials, such as films, when deciding how to improve package sustainability. However, for packaging to improve its end-of-life disposal and achieve store drop-off recyclability, other functional package components including adhesives, inks and coatings should not be overlooked.  

Fortunately, the right adhesives can help converters overcome the stated challenges in the following ways: 

• Maximize chances of receiving recycling label: The right adhesives help increase overall package recyclability levels. Therefore, not only can converters make progress towards reaching 2025 sustainability goals by using the right adhesives, but they can also help brand owners show progress publicly within the NGO websites. Since adhesives are not currently a prime focus in packaging sustainability, converters who make it a priority will be ahead of the curve, helping brand owners break barriers and more easily achieve goals. 
• Design with more compatible components: By using adhesives, inks and coatings that are recycling compatible, the product will result in higher quality PCR resin once recycled. They will not cause the visual defects, which historically have hindered packaging films.  
• Use adhesive to support package recycling claims: By using sustainable adhesives along with other sustainable materials, converters will be able manufacture packaging that is entirely recyclable. This, in turn, will mitigate the issue of EPR taxes, which can vary state by state. Further, this prevents any contemplation on whether the tax would be a cost for the brand owner or converter, helping maintain strong business relationships.  

In particular, we offer the following adhesive technologies designed to enable converters to manufacture recyclable packaging and achieve store drop-off recyclability: 

Water-based, cold seal adhesives:  

These adhesives offer increased recyclability for confectionary packaging applications. In particular, this is due to their easy wash-off capabilities during the repulp process. This means there is no residue left behind, which is a recyclability requirement. They also reduce material usage because they do not bleed through, thereby mitigating the need for additional backing unlike with other technologies. Further, these adhesives are designed for both film and paper packaging materials, including PE films, allowing for more flexibility in switching between recyclable substrates without adding SKUs. Additionally, they are compliant with the EU 10/2011 specification and FDA approved for direct and indirect food contact on film and paper substrates, offering an additional benefit of reducing shipments to multiple locations to complete the product.  

Flexible Laminating Adhesives

Flexible laminating adhesives:  

Compatible with the polyethylene recycling stream, converters can laminate polyethylene films with our Recyclass-certified, laminating adhesives. These adhesives offer high quality performance and have been proven to show little to no impact on the recycling process or resulting recyclate resin. These adhesives run on standard production lines, allowing converters to easily incorporate these products without changing processes nor investing in new equipment. Further, studies have shown these solutions offer 10x higher recyclate quality than comparative, conventional laminating adhesives. This is because Bostik’s formulation expertise designed the solutions with recyclability in mind. As a result, converters have more flexibility to include additional inks, coatings and adhesives without worrying that the overall package will not pass recyclability. Further, when these adhesives are used with polyethylene films, the result is a highly recyclable package that meets the standard necessary for a truly circular economy. 

Are you ready to find recyclable solutions to improve your sustainable packaging manufacturing? Contact a Bostik representative today and learn how our adhesives can help you manufacture packaging for store drop-off recyclability.  

Learn more about the sustainable benefits of cold seal and flexible laminating adhesives: 

Webinar: Want to Learn About Cold Seal Adhesives? 

How to Boost Plastic Packaging Sustainability 

Learn About Flexible Laminating Adhesives