The European Union’s Circular Economy Strategy stipulates that all plastic packaging in the European Union must be 100% recyclable by 2030, which has resulted in the introduction of new regulations in Spain. One current challenge is the restriction on the use of recycled materials in food packaging to guarantee food safety. For example, in Spain, only recycled polyethylene terephthalate (rPET) has been authorized for post-consumer recycled content for food packaging. In addition, flexible PET packaging cannot be recycled using conventional mechanical technologies because of its multilayer composition.
AIMPLAS, the Plastics Technology Centre, Covinil and Eroski have launched the BOTTLE4FLEX Project to develop 100% recyclable flexible skinpack packaging using rPET. Skinpack creates an invisible “second skin” around the product that allows consumers to examine its quality, thus improving the shopping experience with 3D presentation and easy opening. This type of packaging is attractive to consumers due to the premium product appearance and to producers and distributors for its cost-effectiveness and flexibility. However, despite its popularity and efficiency in terms of space and transport, this multilayer packaging faces serious difficulties for recycling.
