One Way Packaging
What is One Way Packaging
The use of single-use plastics is governed by the Directive (EU) 2019/904 of the European Parliament and of the Council of June 5, 2019. Its main objective is to reduce the impact of certain plastic products on the environment and human health, while promoting the transition to a circular economy. However, there is no uniformity, since each country applies the regulations in its own way.
This law establishes the prohibition of using single-use plastic products such as bags, straws and cutlery, plastic bottles or plastic wrap to store food. However, it has several relevant exceptions, being for instance the following types of packaging not affected by the prohibition:
- Food containers that are not intended for immediate consumption, as their essential use is distribution.
- Containers with a capacity higher than 3 liters.
- Packages that are meant for long-distance transportation.
Basically, we could say that all packaging devoted to logistics falls out of the scope of application of the one way packaging regulation.
One Way Packaging Regulations
The use of single-use plastics is governed by the Directive (EU) 2019/904 of the European Parliament and of the Council of June 5, 2019. Its main objective is to reduce the impact of certain plastic products on the environment and human health, while promoting the transition to a circular economy. However, there is no uniformity, since each country applies the regulations in its own way.
This law establishes the prohibition of using single-use plastic products such as bags, straws and cutlery, plastic bottles or plastic wrap to store food. However, it has several relevant exceptions, being for instance the following types of packaging not affected by the prohibition:
- Food containers that are not intended for immediate consumption, as their essential use is distribution.
- Containers with a capacity higher than 3 liters.
- Packages that are meant for long-distance transportation.
Basically, we could say that all packaging devoted to logistics falls out of the scope of application of the one way packaging regulation.
Recommended use cases
There are some situations where one way packaging is useful and even recommendable:
Long-distance transportation
In these cases, transporting reusable pallet boxes back to your warehouses and bases is not economically feasible. With one way packaging, there is no need to return empty containers and this can even be more eco friendly.
Waste avoidance
This is especially relevant in the food industry, where removing plastic entirely from the supply chain may not be the best solution to protect the environment. This is because it enables distribution of food and minimizes food waste by keeping food fresh for longer, which in the end is environmentally speaking cost-efficient.
Different size products:
When operating with products of different sizes, single-use packaging is the best option for optimizing space and speed the dispatch terms. It also makes unpacking easier for the recipient. These materials, such as EPS, are perfect for filling empty spaces in packaging, due to how easy it is to cut and how cheap it is.
Warnings for use
Reusing packaging that is not suitable for it can have harmful consequences either for the product it protects or for the health of the final consumer. Usually it is due to microbiological reasons, as reused packaging can provoke fine cracks through which germs come in and overgrow. Another frequent motive is the loss of the materials’ characteristics or even organoleptic properties. Also transference can be an issue here.
This shows the importance of choosing materials such as EPS that, among many other positive characteristics such as lightweight or great insulation properties, is completely inert, meaning that it unfolds its full effects without transferring any kind of substances to the products inside.
One Way Packaging Solutions
Single use solutions are especially used in the agro-food and industrial sectors, where the fragility of the products and long distance transportation have to be carefully considered. One way packaging solutions are known for their resistance and can withstand humidity, cold, temperature changes and vibrations, among others.
The most common ones are:
- Fresh food boxes in general and fish boxes in particular.
- Inlays and trays for oversea transport of CKD (Complete Knock Down) and SKD (Semi Knock Down) parts.
- Engineering parts protection.
Recycling One Way Plastic
Only 14% of worldwide plastic waste is recycled nowadays, being the remaining incinerated or directly dumped in landfills or oceans.
If we add to this that global plastic waste is forecasted to double by 2030, it becomes crystal clear that recycling this material is an urgent action for all involved players in the industrial sector and this includes single-use plastic.
In fact, it generates fewer emissions using some kind of one way packaging that will be recycled than choosing a reusable container and, after some uses, throw it away.
In this regard, Knauf Industries Appliances favors solutions based on 100% recyclable materials. We also promote single material solutions, select our raw materials according to their technical characteristics and include recycled raw materials in our products when permitted by the regulations.
Recycling Systems
Recycling is key to closing the circular economy cycle, as it enables transforming wastes into new materials that can be recovered. This helps shrink the carbon footprint in many ways.
For its part, EPS is 100% recyclable as, like most homogeneous thermoplastic materials, it fluidizes under the effect of heat and subsequently hardens on cooling, in a reversible process.
We have also created the recovery program Knauf Circular through which we provide users of EPS products (industrial firms, retail sector, insulation installation contractors, recycling centers, etc.) with on-site collection services for their EPS packaging waste. In such a way, we guarantee the material is correctly processed and given a new life.
Types of recycling
Although the exact recycling process depends on each piece of waste, we can distinguish 3 main types of recycling:
- Mechanical recycling: techniques and processes that include manual work or assisted by machines, such as trommel, sieves or screening. It is widely used in the classification of mixed waste and in the recycling of plastic.
- Chemical recycling: it uses techniques that involve changes in the chemical structure of the material. The objective is to decompose the polymer to obtain monomers. The most common examples of this way of recycling are pyrolysis, hydrogenation, thermal cracking, dissolution, hydrolysis, methanolysis and glycolysis.
- Energy recycling: the main aim is the use of energy. It is used with wastes that cannot be classified and recovered due to technical or economic reasons. The most remarkable examples are incineration, pyrolysis and gasification.
Recycling process is
If we zoom in on EPS, its recycling process is as follows:
First of all, EPS needs to be separated from other materials, as it will be processed alone.
It is then transported to specific processing plants.
EPS compressing machines allow companies to optimize space, reducing the materials’ volume.
EPS densifiers allow for the processing and recycling of EPS waste. In order to do so, they crush EPS into tiny pieces and then melt them to generate bricks that are easily transported to new facilities, where they can be incorporated into new products.
One way packaging customization
In certain cases, products are so specific and our customers’ needs are so particular, that the only way to guarantee excellent packaging is with made-to-measure solutions.
At Knauf Industries we are able to customize your single use packaging so it enhances your brand image and products to the highest level. In order to do so, eco-design is integrated at every stage of a project by selecting the materials with the lowest environmental impact for quality of use and required technical performance and optimizing the design of our packaging and the quantity of material used.
We also have an ID Lab that untiringly works in the innovation in materials and eco-innovation to fulfill customers’ needs while contributing to the circular economy.
Engineering system
Packaging customization plays a major role in industrial packaging, where high compression materials are required to efficiently protect loads. Thanks to the versatility of EPS it is plausible to create any shape quickly, easily and cost-effectively.
In this regard, we transform our customers’ products according to their requirements and help them optimize their logistical processes, by providing solutions to their specific problems, anticipating those of the future and developing the optimal solutions without forgetting ecology and sustainability.
Examples
Thanks to customization, anything you can imagine can come true. This is because it is very easy to cut and shape EPS. A noteworthy example is insulating EPS beehives that help keep bees warmer in the winter and cooler in the summer, to promote their survival and the honey making process. That is good for biodiversity and good for honey producers alike.
One Way Packaging and Knauf
At Knauf Industries we count on EPS as the more versatile material choice to tackle the obstacles that one way packaging may pose. Due to its lightweight, shock resistance and exceptional insulation properties it is perfectly suitable to protect high-volume goods from fresh food to cool vaccines, going through industrial parts and fragile electronic components. Moreover, it is highly sustainable as it saves energy and reduces CO2 during transport thanks to its 98% air composition, helps reduce waste and is 100% recyclable.
We offer a wide range of EPS packaging solutions:
- Made-to-measure solutions for industry.
- Eurolight®
- S-KI products.
- Thermolabile medicines packaging.