A Cold Seal PE film Packaging Case Study Featuring American Packaging Corporation, Bostik and Charter Next Generation

The Situation

Many verticals within the flexible packaging industry pledged that 100% of their packaging will soon be recyclable, reusable or compostable, according to the 2022 Ellen MacArthur Global Commitment Report. For brand owners especially, meeting this commitment is critical to their company’s success. However, because regulations and certifications that relate to packaging’s end of life continue to evolve, it can be challenging to ensure the packaging always meets them and ultimately accomplishes the pledge.

In particular, within North America, How2Recycle, an entity that standardizes recycling instructions on packaging labels for the public, annually publishes recycling guidelines for packaging using flexible polyethylene (PE), which is the only U.S.-recyclable film to date. These guidelines aim at providing a clear and consistent message on packaging material recycling status. They detail what kinds of packaging structures can be recycled in various recycling streams and indicate which part of the structures require additional testing and prequalification letters. Brand owners then use these prequalification letters when their final packages are submitted to How2Recycle in order to obtain Store Drop-Off certification. Having this certification means their packaging can have a label on it, informing consumers they can bring the packaging to participating stores with PE collection bins. For brand owners, this helps build brand loyalty, making it easy for consumers to know exactly what to do with the packaging and how they can reduce their environmental impact.

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