Recyclable alternatives and possible uses for renewable raw materials and recyclates in packaging films.

From packaging legislation to retailer style guides to the differentiation at the PoS: the adaptation of today‘s packaging solutions follows various approaches. By ensuring the legally required recyclability and reducing the use of virgin plastics and petrochemical raw materials, flexible packaging contributes to the circular economy. In the following overview you will find our solutions for the sections: design for recycling, bio-based materials and recycled materials, as well as the market segments in which we have a high level of expertise and industry experience.

Design for Recycling

The minimum standard according to the German Packaging Act (§21 Abs. 3 VerpackG) requires to adapt the materials suitable for existing sorting facilities and waste streams. Depending on the type of packaging (pouch, lidding film / tray), laminates with components made of polyamide (PA) or polyethylene terephthalate (PET) are considered to have limited or no recyclability. In order to counteract future additional costs, distributors are dependent on being able to use alternatives. We have developed solutions for various applications based on polypropylene (PP), polyethylene (PE) or polyolefin (PP/PE) structures.

We offer different types of polypropylene films for flow pack applications to maximize the recyclability of your packaging. Based on the parameters of your process and your recyclability requirements, we design the film to achieve the best possible performance on your packaging machine.

  • Film combinations of: BOPP, CPP, PP

  • Barrier: EVOH < 5%, PVOH, SIOX, metallized

  • Features: lock-seal, easy peel, laser perforation, metallized, anti-fog

  • Suitable for: HFFS, VFFS, stand-up pouches

 

Sealing temperatures:

100 – 180 °C

Recyclability

90 – 100 %

We offer various types of top films made of polypropylene to maximize the recyclability of your packaging. Based on the parameters of your process and your recyclability requirements, we design the film to achieve the best possible performance on your packaging machine.

  • Film combinations of: BOPP, CPP, PP

  • Barrier: EVOH < 5%, PVOH, SIOX, metallized

  • Features: reclosability, easy peel, burst peel, anti-fog, metallized

  • Sealing to: PP thermoforming films, PP cups, PP trays

Sealing temperatures:

130 – 195 °C

Recyclability

90 - 100 %

We offer different types of polyethylene films for flow pack applications to maximize the recyclability of your packaging in European markets. According to the parameters of your process and recyclability requirements, we design the film to achieve the best possible performance on your packaging machine.

  • Film combinations of: BOPE, MOPE, LDPE, LLDPE

  • Barrier: EVOH < 5%, SIOX, AlOX, metallized

  • Features: lock-seal, easy peel, laser perforation, metallized, anti-fog

  • Suitable for: HFFS, VFFS, stand-up pouches

Sealing temperatures:

85 - 135 °C

Recyclability

90 - 100 %

We offer various types of polyethylene top films to achieve the maximum recyclability of your packaging in European markets. According to the parameters of your process and your recyclability requirements, we design the film to achieve the best possible performance on your packaging lines.

  • Film combinations of: BOPE, MOPE, LDPE, LLDPE

  • Barrier: EVOH < 5 %, SIOX, AlOX

  • Features: lock-seal, easy peel, anti-fog

  • Suitable for: PE thermoforming films

Sealing temperatures:

80 – 135 °C

Recyclability

90 - 100 %

For packaging processes with sensitive process parameters, we offer a film made of polyolefins (PP / PE combined) that ensures recyclability in accordance with the German Packaging Act. Depending on the needs of product, the film can be equipped with high or medium barrier and can be processed reliably even at high speed rates.

  • Film combinations of: BOPP, LDPE, LLDPE

  • Barrier: EVOH, MBP (Medium Barrier Polymer)

  • Features: lock-seal, easy peel, laser perforation, metallized, anti-fog

  • Suitable for: HFFS, VFFS, stand-up pouches

Sealing temperatures:

80 – 180 °C

Recyclability

80 - 90 %

For packaging processes with a small process window, we offer top films made of polyolefins (PP / PE combined) that ensure recyclability in accordance with the German Packaging Act. Depending on the needs of product, the film can be equipped with high or medium barrier and can be processed reliably even at high speed rates rates.

  • Film combinations of: BOPP, LDPE, LLDPE

  • Barrier: EVOH, MBP (Medium Barrier Polymer).

  • Features: reclosability, easy peel, burst peel, anti-fog

  • Sealing to: PO thermoforming films, PP trays, PP cups

Sealing temperatures:

130 – 190 °C

Recyclability

80 - 90 %

Bio-based Materials

Reducing the use of crude oil-based virgin plastics is an important part of the sustainability agenda of many companies. In addition, the German Packaging Act provides in section 3(2) of "... within the framework of the assessment of participation fees ... to promote the use of renewable raw materials." Often the higher costs were an obstacle for the use of these materials. Depending on the positioning, it is nevertheless interesting for brand owners to use renewable raw materials. We offer materials made from organic waste and plastic-free, compostable solutions.

To improve the carbon footprint of plastic packaging, we offer you the possibility to use materials made from organic waste. By recycling biological waste from industrial sources, such as cooking fat, raw materials are produced that can be used like virgin material. As the bio-based part of these materials stores more CO2 than is emitted during production, there is a positive effect to the carbon footprint of the packaging.

  • Film combinations of edible fat-based PE, tall oil-based PE, BOPP, BOPE, MOPE

  • Barrier: EVOH, SIOX, ALOX

  • Suitable for both flow pack and top film applications and sleeves

  • Recyclability more than 80 %

  • Usage of reycled materials: up to 60 %

Sealing temperatures:

90 – 135 °C

Percentage of renewable raw materials:

up to 100 %

To improve the carbon footprint of plastic packaging, we offer you the option of using materials made from sugar cane. As the bio-based part of this material stores more CO2 than is emitted during production, there is a positive effect to the carbon footprint of the packaging. The use of renewable resources reduces the need for finite, oil-based raw materials. 

  • Film combinations made of: sugar cane-based PE, MOPE, BOPE, BOPP.

  • Barrier: EVOH, SIOX, ALOX, PVOH.

  • Suitable for both flow pack and top film applications and sleeves

  • Recyclability > 80%

Sealing temperatures:

90 - 135 °C

Percentage of renewable raw materials:

bis zu 85 %

We offer you the possibility of using paper- and cellulose-based materials in various combinations to increase the proportion of renewable raw materials in your packaging. For products with high barrier requirements, it is possible to choose both petrochemical and bio-based raw material combinations to ensure the necessary product protection.

  • Film combinations of: base paper, cellulose, PE

  • Barrier: EVOH, PVDC

  • Suitable for both flow pack and top film applications

Sealing temperatures:

80 – 180 °C

Percentage of renewable raw materials:

Up to 90 %

Recycled Materials

The reuse of plastics is the decisive point for the further development of a circular economy. Thus, Section 3 (2) of the German Packaging Act also provides "... within the framework of the assessment of participation fees ... to promote the use of recycled materials". Until now, a limiting factor for the use of these materials has been that the recycled granulates have generally not received any food grade conformity. The further development of chemical recycling now makes it possible to use recyclates for food packaging as well, although these have not yet been available in marketable quantities. In principle, however, we also offer sustainable solutions, based on mechanical recycling for non-food- and chemical recycling for food packaging.

PCR-based Material // Mechanical

We offer you the possibility to use PCR-based materials for your packaging. Today, almost all mechanically recycled raw materials are not approved for direct food contact, so they are generally used for non-food products. The only exception are rPET films made from recycled plastic bottles, mostly used in thermoforming applications for bottom webs.

  • Film combinations of recycled PE, recycled PP, recycled PET

  • Barrier: EVOH, SIOX, ALOX

  • Suitable for both flow pack and top film applications

Sealing temperatures:

80 - 185 °C

Percentage of recycled material

Up to 60 %

We offer you the option of using chemically recycled materials for your food packaging. Compared to mechanically recycled raw materials, post consumer waste is processed in a thermochemical process to a pyrolysis oil and can then be processed like virgin plastic. Accordingly, chemically recycled materials have a food grade conformity and are currently the only option for the usage of PCR with direct food contact. 

  • Film combinations of recycled PE, recycled PP, recycled BOPA

  • Barriers: EVOH, SIOX, ALOX

  • Suitable for both flow pack and top film applications

Sealing temperatures:

80 - 185 °C

Percentage of recycled material

Up to 100 %

Damit Ihre Produktverpackungen Teil der Kreislaufwirtschaft werden, bieten wir Ihnen die Möglichkeit, Materialien aus chemisch recycelten Industrieabfällen einzusetzen. Der Einsatz dieser Materialien bewirkt, dass weniger fossile Rohstoffe verbraucht werden und zudem auch die Kreislaufführung industrieller Ressourcen begünstig wird.

  • Folienkombinationen aus recyceltem Tallöl, recyceltem PE, recyceltem PP

  • Barrieren aus EVOH, SIOX, ALOX

  • Sowohl für Schlauchbeutel- als auch für Oberfolienanwendungen geeignet

Sealing temperatures:

80 - 185 °C

Percentage of recycled material

up to 100 %

We offer you the option to use materials made from mechanically recycled industrial waste to let your packaging be part of the circular economy. The use of these materials ensures that plastic production waste is kept in the cycle, thus reducing the consumption of virgin petrochemicals. 

  • Film combinations made of recycled PE, recycled PP

  • Barriers made of EVOH, SIOX, ALOX

  • Suitable for both flow pack and top film applications

  • Recyclability > 80

Sealing temperatures:

80 - 185 °C

Percentage of recycled material

up to 60 %

Markets

In order to be able to perform as a reliable supplier of flexible packaging in the FMCG industry, a deep understanding of the different packaging processes is necessary in addition to our own infrastructure. Over the decades, we have gained the necessary experience to adapt the performance parameters of our products to a wide variety of machine types and products. We have an extensive expertise in the following industries.

 In order to meet the different packaging and product safety requirements of our customers for their cheese specialties and dairy products, we design individual packaging solutions. Thanks to our long experience in packaging production for different types of cheese, we are able to offer our customers films based on specific product characteristics such as outgassing processes as well as the existing packaging machine equipment and parameters. In addition, we support our customers with our know-how in developing sustainable packaging solutions that meets both consumer and regulatory requirements. 

We offer the following solutions for your dairy products:

  • Flow pack films for high speed horizontal and vertical FFS machines with PP, or PE based sealing layer.

  • Top films sealing to PP, PE, PET or MonoAPET

  • Available with high, medium and without barrier

  • Features: Peelable, reclosable, antifog

  • Wax-laminated paper-aluminum laminates for butter wrappers

For manufacturers of meat products and meat-free protein products, we produce packaging solutions that are specially designed to meet the high demands for product protection and process stability during the packaging process. Our focus is mainly to ensure the seal integrity without losing the characteristic of an easy-to-open, consumer-friendly package. Accordingly, we individualize the sealing layers of our high-barrier films to our customers packaging lines in order to ensure safe process parameters for a high cycle performance on the packaging machine. In order not to lose these central properties of our high-barrier films during the transformation to recyclability, we have developed various solutions that continue to meet this requirement. We produce these as single-material solutions based on PP or PE.

We offer the following solutions for your sausage and meat products:

  • Top films with high barrier sealing to PP, PE, PET or monoAPET

  • Flow pack films with high barrier for high-speed FFS machines with PP-, or PE-based sealing layer.

  • Features: Peelable, reclosable, metallized, antifog

For our customers in the bread and bakery products industry, we supply flexible packaging that has to withstand high physical and thermal influences in particular. In order to exclude product-related punctures during the packaging process, the films for this segment are specially designed by us for high puncture resistance and heat resistance, in order to ensure the best possible performance in the packaging process, even at very high cycle rates. In order to comply with the new regulations of packaging legislation, we have developed recyclable films with high puncture resistance even without the use of polyamide.

We offer the following solutions for your bread and bakery products:

  • Flow pack films for high-speed horizontal and vertical FFS machines with PP-, or PE-based sealing layer

  • Top films sealing to PP, PE, PET or monoAPET

  • Available with and without barrier

  • Features: Peelable, reclosable

The dynamic development in the organic food market is constantly producing new brands and product combinations. Increased consumer interest in cereals, pulses, dried fruits or superfoods has also intensified the competition in this segment. Our packaging solutions for these products therefore have good stiffness, transparency and print quality to support the best presentation of the customers brands at the PoS. Our films can be processed into all common types of bag packaging and are equipped with opening functions or envelope reclose features, depending on your requirements. Even for particularly dusty dry products, they guarantee tight sealing to ensure the best protection against water vapor and external influences.

We offer the following solutions for your dry products:

  • Flow pack films for high-speed horizontal and vertical FFS machines with PP-, or PE-based sealing layer.

  • Available with and without barrier

  • Features: Peelable, resealable, metallized, frosted

For the challenges in the packaging process of convenience products, our films are designed to withstand particularly high thermal stress. Depending on the product, they ensure heat resistance, for example for pre-cooking fresh pasta, or have thermal resistance for microwave applications. To ensure that our customers applications meet the legally required recyclability, we have developed sustainable solutions for ready meals that offer the best possible synthesis of material combination, process reliability and cycle performance in the packaging process. We optimize the sealing layers and friction properties of the laminates individually for our customers line configurations.  

We offer the following solutions for your convenience products:

  • Flow pack films for high-speed horizontal and vertical FFS machines with PP-, or PE-based sealing layer

  • top films sealing to PP, PE, PET or MonoAPET

  • Available with and without barrier

  • Equipment options: Peelable, reclosable, anti-fog

The world of confectionery has always impressed consumers with attractive print designs and a wide range of ever new varieties and flavors. The diversity of varieties also requires fast and flexible production processes for packaging, which we fulfill with our machinery. Depending on the product, our films offer an optimum barrier against water vapor or security for flavor protection. The sustainability developements, for example reduced sugar or natural ingredients, is a clear trend in this market. As flexible packaging for confectionery often has a good recyclability already, many brand owners are interested in the possible uses of alternative materials. According to this, we develop solutions based on renewable raw materials for our customers so they can support the differentiation potential of their products at the PoS with suitable packaging materials.

We offer the following solutions for your confectionery products:

  • Flow pack films for high speed horizontal and vertical FFS machines with PP, or PE based sealing layer.

  • Top films sealing on PP, PE, PET or MonoAPET

  • Available with and without barrier

  • Features: Peelable, reclosable

  • Wax-laminated aluminum-paper laminates

  • Wrappers with twist and deadfolde properties

Consumers great affection for their pets leads to particularly high demands on pet food packaging. For the various types of dry or functional pet food, we produce flow pack applications that are tailored to our customers packaging processes. Due to the growing premium segment in the pet food market, the high raw material quality in addition to the renunciation of artificial additives, the demand for product protection through packaging is also increasing. Our customers benefit from our long experience in the design of functional barriers and sealing layers for sensitive products. We can also guarantee the appropriate printing quality for an individual product presentation thanks to our modern printing facilities.     

We offer the following solutions for your pet food products:

  • Flow pack films for high-speed horizontal and vertical FFS machines with PP-, or PE-based sealing layer

  • Top films sealing to PP, PE, PET or MonoAPET

  • Available with and without barrier

  • Features: Peelable (tear-off), reclosable (zipper), metallized

For packaging films of frozen foods, their tear and puncture resistance is just as decisive as a low susceptibility to kink breakage at low temperatures. So we also offer coex and laminated films for industrial deep-frozen products that meet these demanding requirement profiles. We also offer sealing layers for particularly fast-running lines that master the difficult balancing act between early sealability and a good hot tack.

We offer the following solutions for your frozen products:

  • PE and PP coex and composite laminates

  • Wax-laminated paper-aluminium laminates for winders

Flexible packaging for ground filter coffee, coffee pods or whole beans requires a high level of aroma protection in particular. With our wide range of technologies, we offer different barrier designs, with and without aluminium, which protect the product from loss of quality due to oxygen, light and water vapour and preserve the aroma in the pack. For optimal product presentation, the materials are finished in flexographic or gravure printing, including optional sophisticated varnishing.

We offer the following solutions for your hot and instant beverages:

  • Films for flowpacks, stand-up pouches, side flats and block bottom pouches on high-speed vertical FFS machines.

  • Equipment variants: Peelable, resealable, metallised

The beverage market for returnable PET bottles can justifiably be described as a pioneer in the drive for more sustainable packaging. As the market leader in this sector, we have been producing stretch sleeves with the highest print quality for more than 20 years, above all fulfilling the demands of fast-running filling lines. To support the industry's activities on the road to climate neutrality, we have developed solutions for our customers using bio-based and recycled materials. The challenge has been to ensure demanding physical material properties while using renewable raw materials. Because more CO2 is stored in the growth of bio-based materials than is emitted in the production of pellets and labels, these solutions reduce the carbon footprint.

We offer the following solutions for your returnable PET containers:

  • Stretch sleeves for GDB pool bottles and individual returnable containers.

  • Features: white and transparent (no-label look), mechanically perforated

Products from the home and personal care market have special demands to flexible packaging. For this purpose, we are increasing the already high hygiene standards in our production to also meet microbiological requirements - for example, for tampon packaging. Our flow pack applications for detergents offer not only protection against water vapor but also very high sealing strength, needed due to high product weight. In order to meet the increasing demand from our customers for packaging with recycled content, we have developed suitable films made from PCR granules. We have succeeded in retaining the material-typical properties necessary for the packaging process, while at the same time ensuring a high optical quality of the material.

We offer the following solutions for your hygiene products:

  • Flow pack films for high speed horizontal and vertical FFS machines with PP, or PE based sealing layer.

  • Available with and without barrier

  • Features: Peelable, reclosable, metallized