Illig and Südpack have jointly developed a thermoformed container with a heat-sealable lid whose components are certified compostable and predominantly bio-based.
The thermoformed sample packaging for food, which Südpack Verpackungen and Illig Maschinenbau have developed in a cooperation project, is particularly suitable for vegetarian and vegan foods as well as dairy products such as yoghurt or cheese. It consists of a certified compostable (DIN EN 13432) and partially bio-based plastic ecovio, which was coloured green for this application.
South pack produced a film for this purpose using an extrusion process and developed the industrially compostable laminate lidding film. Illig designed the thermoforming mould, thermoformed the trays from the film and sealed the lid. The result is a thin-walled food container, which reproduces the shape of the mould in detail and can be produced at the same speed as similar packaging made from conventional plastics.
Illig and Südpack follow the trend towards compostable, bio-based solutions
This cooperation project shows that thermoformed packaging based on certified compostable materials is possible under the current market conditions. This follows the increasing trend and the demand for compostable and bio-based packaging solutions in more and more countries.
Food packaging with organic residues in particular is difficult to process using conventional mechanical recycling methods. In such applications, industrially compostable containers are a sensible alternative, where there is the appropriate infrastructure for composting. This means that the leftover food, including the packaging, can be sent for organic recycling instead of thermal utilisation, which is not ecologically sensible in this case.
Optimised bioplastic can be processed on standard machines
The bioplastic ecovio used for this case study was specially optimised for film extrusion with subsequent thermoforming: It can be processed on standard machines in mono or co-extrusion into films with or without an additional oxygen barrier. The bioplastic has a high heat resistance up to 95° C, is approved for contact with food and has similarly good mechanical properties to polypropylene (PP).
„Together with Illig, we were able to show with this case study that films made from the material ecovio can not only be produced effectively on standard extrusion lines, but also demonstrate outstanding properties when processed on thermoforming lines.“ Dr Jürgen Betz, responsible for R&D Extrusion at Südpack.
The flexible film developed by Südpack for the lid consists of a multilayer, partially transparent laminate based on polylactic acid (PLA) and brown paper - All components are industrially compostable in accordance with DIN EN 13432. The film can be heat-sealed with other PLA-based materials and can also be optionally equipped with a barrier layer.
„With our joint project approach, we also want to show how certified compostable and bio-based plastics can be easily thermoformed and further processed on standard machines. We were able to run at the same machine speed as for polypropylene. Our thermoforming mould reproduces the ‘Vegan Burger’ lettering embedded in the base of the tray with great attention to detail. This opens up numerous design possibilities for thermoformed, industrially compostable packaging.“ Sven Engelmann, Head of the Illig Technology Centre ITC and Packaging Development in Heilbronn.
With this cooperation project, both companies want to demonstrate ecologically interesting solutions for packaging manufacturers and thus help shape the future in a sustainable way.
SourceIllig
