You may have heard that product packaging matters, and that is correct. Think about it, after investing much money in producing a fantastic item, you want to package it attractively and securely. While the focus on packaging exists, it helps to ensure your packaging choices are also environmentally friendly.
Many materials are used for packaging items, and some are non-biodegradable, which means they can threaten the environment. This is why we have created a product line of PCR packaging.
If you want to learn more, please visit our website EcoPlas.
In this blog post, we will be writing about PCR packaging, why it is best, and how using PCR packaging is best for your brand.
PCR is an abbreviation for post consumer recycled plastics. This means the raw materials used to make the packaging for different products are from post-consumer resin. These are recycled plastics, reused to help protect the environment.
Using PCR plastic is the most sustainable packaging option globally. And we are delighted to be among the top-ranked companies providing these sustainable packaging options to customers all over the world.
There is a wide range of opportunities for investors interested in selling PCR bottling and packaging supplies to retail users. There is a massive demand for bottling and packaging supplies in different industrial sectors. Also, producers of beauty products and other fast consumer goods need these packages made with PCR materials.
Producers of sodas and bottled drinks have a high demand for these eco-friendly packaging products. You can see the recycle watermarks on the plastic bottles used to package the drinks we often enjoy.
Also, producers of cosmetic products like hand and body creams, facial creams, tubes, jars, and closures need these post consumer recycled materials. These recycled materials are perfect for making plastic packaging for plastic injection and other pharmaceutical bottles. Also, there is a demand for responsible packaging alternatives in the medical industry.
We can continue mentioning names of industries where these highly efficient plastic packaging options are in consistent demand, like the military, automobile industry, and many more.
Overall, the benefits of using recycled plastics are apparent, and it is good that end users and other consumers in different parts of the world have accepted products made from PCR plastics.
The ultimate goal is always to ethically source post consumer resin for plastic packaging in the best ways. We have achieved that goal as a company. Raw materials are always around us. However, there needs to be a proper collection method. With proper plans for sustainable packaging, the end users of plastic packaged products will save their waste, resulting in garbage dumps.
Here are the basic steps involved in collecting and processing PCR plastic:
Everyone living in the community needs to know about the need to protect the environment. This starts with educating the public about non-biodegradable products. Plastics are classified as non-biodegradable products. These products will not decompose when the users dispose of them in the environment.
When the public is aware of the dangers of disposing of plastics into the environment, they can cooperate with the local organizations responsible for collecting PCR plastics that they can recycle.
Therefore, creating awareness about recycled plastics and their benefits will help encourage more people to provide the materials needed to produce PCR plastic.
After educating the public about the need to dispose of plastic bottles and other materials used for recycled plastic, it is essential to collect this waste. There are many recycling programs in developed communities. Local authorities usually hand out particular bins for collecting plastic bottles and similar plastic packaging materials for recycling. These can be color-coded bins, making it easy for the public to know where to keep their waste for recycling.
A proper collection structure will help enhance the collection of any plastic bottles or tubes from residents in that area. Also, they can create a central collection point for recycled plastic.
We should note that PCR plastic is made up of recycled plastic materials and other virgin materials. Therefore, the companies making PCR materials must establish good sources of these virgin materials.
The plastic recyclers then approach the local recycling agencies and make agreements to collect the HDPE plastics they have gathered from the community. The plastic recyclers transport these bales of plastic to their factory for recycling.
The final stage of making PCR plastics from recycled materials is converting the pellets into PCR plastic bottles, tubes, and jars. These products are suitable for packaging a wide range of products in different consumer sectors.
The virgin plastic from recycled materials is perfect. It works like other new plastic materials. You will hardly know if there is no tag showing the company has made a product&#;s packaging from PCR plastic.
There are many benefits of buying products the brand has packaged in PCR plastic. Here are the notable ones:
The final product for the packaging is thin and extremely durable. The thin PCR plastics are versatile, which makes them more valuable to product manufacturers in different industries. Also, since the packaging is durable and secure, there are no losses from torn product packaging, even when they have to ship products to buyers across the globe.
Using products packaged in pcr plastics is also a great idea because it reduces the amount of non-biodegradable waste that enters dumpsites. That means fewer troubles for the environment. Unrecycled plastic remains on the earth for many years, causing severe environmental pollution from the harmful plastic refuse. Every member of the community should support the drive to lower the carbon footprint and grow the industry for packaging materials made from PCR plastics.
Many industries often need to send bulk orders across the miles. Therefore, it is essential to use products that can remain secure during transit. PCR plastics will not tear easily because they are flexible and tough at the same time. These are outstanding packaging options usable in different industries.
In addition to that, the tougher PCR material, which has virgin resin, can protect the product stored in eco friendly packaging. This is one of the benefits of PCR plastic. For example, packaged cosmetic products will remain unchanged by direct sunlight if the product is on display outdoors or during transit. This is so because the PCR material provides the best shield from UV rays.
Compared to other options for packaging products, PCR plastics stand out for being affordable. This means in addition to protecting the environment, or at least contributing, the investors in PCR plastics can make a reasonable profit because there is a constant demand from the market.
Many countries are battling environmental pollution and degradation, often caused by the processes involved in finding fossil fuels. The extraction processes are also harmful to the environment. It is always best to use sustainable options like PCR plastic instead of new plastics.
The fossil fuels are needed to make brand-new plastic products. So, making the switch to using PCR plastics reduces the need to source fossil fuels. This is one of the main benefits of PCR plastics in protecting the environment.
Also, reducing the projects involved in mining fossil fuels helps boost the economy by saving costs. We are currently seeing various advertising campaigns encouraging companies to focus on reprocessing existing plastics. These companies should find ways to incorporate recycled pet packaging in their business.
Investing in PCR plastics for packaging is a great idea. The market already exists, and demand is high. Smart investors only need to locate local customers who need PCR plastic packaging. Then contact our company for supplies. That is the start of a lucrative business. It is easy. All you need is a warehouse to store the supplies, then buy from our company in bulk. We will ship our bulk orders fast to global locations.
You can order PCR plastic packaging like bottles for storing beauty and cosmetic products, pharmaceutical products, or food packaging from us. All you have to do is visit the product page, identify what you need, and send us your customer contact form. We will provide quick support to complete your order.
In today&#;s world, the sustainability of products and production processes is at the forefront of consumer awareness. Conventional plastics, when not recycled, eventually end up in landfills, rivers and oceans, where they pose a threat to plant and animal life in these ecosystems due to their lack of or complexity in biodegradability.
Most of this plastic waste comes from single-use products. One way to address this problem of plastic pollution is to recycle plastic products after they have been used by the consumer. Plastic recycled after consumption is referred to as post-consumer recycled plastic or PCR plastic.
The technologies and processes for processing post-consumer plastic are improving and getting more efficient. Yet, they still face challenges.
What does post-consumer recycled plastic have to offer? Perhaps the most important paradigm shift is a shift from a linear economy model to a sustainable circular economy model.
In this article, you will learn about:
What PCR plastics are
How PCR plastics are produced and used in manufacturing
Why PCR plastics are important
The challenges and future of PCR plastics
Figure 1. Plastic recycling codes representing the different types of plastic
What is PCR plastic?
When a plastic product contains recycled content, this content may originate from one of two sources: post-industrial waste or post-consumer waste.
Plastic material that is recycled from plastic waste after it has been used by a consumer is referred to as post-consumer recycled plastic (PCR plastic).
PCR plastic is different from plastic waste from industries that are being reused in the production line to minimize wastage - otherwise known as post-industrial recycled plastic (PIR plastic).
Post-consumer recycled plastics are collected not only from recently discarded waste such as household waste but also from oceans, beaches, rivers and places where they may pose a significant environmental threat.
In the current manufacture of new plastic products, PCR plastic is often mixed with virgin plastic to maintain the property requirements of such products. This is due to the fact that recycled plastic may suffer from polymer degradation as a result of various contaminants found throughout the recycling stream.
In some cases, such as food packaging, regulations may prevent the use of PCR plastic altogether. This is because of the uncertainty regarding their sources and harmful impurities they may contain, which may migrate into the food and cause health problems for consumers down the line.
Food packaging should be inert and not release its constituents into food even at elevated temperatures. Regulations from government bodies such as the FDA and the European Commission outline considerations and concerns about the use of PCR plastic as food packaging.
Generally, PCR plastics can be reused for the same function for only a limited number of cycles before they become too degraded to meet those specific performance requirements. When this happens, they are downgraded to be used in other ways such as insulation, decking, fabrics and carpeting.
Want more information on pcr plastic pros and cons? Feel free to contact us.
Table 1. Classification of plastic waste [1]
Plastic Waste
Pre-consumer waste
Post-consumer waste
Municipal solid waste (MSW)
Other wastes
Production waste
Residential
Distribution and Industry
Damaged goods
Industrial
Automotive
Commercial
Electrical and Electronics
Institutional
Construction and Demolitions
Agriculture
Production of PCR plastic
The production of PCR plastics occurs in much the same way as recycling plastics for reuse in general. The major difference is in where the recycled plastic comes from.
The process of recycling plastic follows four possible methods depending on the homogeneity, cleanliness and quality of the plastic waste collected [3][4]:
primary recycling
secondary recycling
tertiary recycling
quaternary recycling
Only secondary and tertiary recycling produce what is known as PCR plastics. Primary recycling reuses industrial plastic waste, while quaternary recycling destroys the plastic to recover energy and create power.
Secondary or mechanical recycling
This process is limited to thermoplastics (plastics that can be melted and moulded repeatedly). It does not entail alteration of the molecular structure of the plastic. Instead, it involves the mechanical processing of the plastic after it has been sorted by colour, size and shape.
Plastic is processed into plastic pellets that can be used in the manufacture of new products. However, there is usually a reduction in the quality of the products made from this recycled material. To mitigate this problem, virgin plastic is often mixed in with recycled plastic.
Tertiary, chemical or feedstock recycling
This process involves the complete or partial depolymerization of the plastic into monomers or oligomers respectively through chemical reactions. The resulting monomers can then be polymerized to produce the original polymer or new ones.
Companies such as Lavergne and Sabic are leading producers of PCR plastics such as polyphenyl-ether (PPE), high-impact polystyrene (HIPS), polycarbonates (PC), High-density polyethylene (HDPE), polyethylene terephthalate (PET), acrylonitrile butadiene styrene (ABS) and polymer blends which contain high PCR plastic content.
Recycling companies create programs that incentivize their clients to sort and return plastic waste. They sustain long-term relationships with other suppliers who supply them with high-quality feedstock. Some of their processes are proprietary, but they generally follow the same general procedure outlined above.
The importance of PCR plastic
Recycling from industrial waste is considerably easier as it entails simply reusing excess leftover material from the production process. Although recycling becomes more complicated when the plastic in question is thermosetting plastic, greater production efficiency can drastically reduce waste production and incorporate its reuse as seamlessly as possible.
Therefore, there is not much room for improvement, environmentally speaking, from this stream of plastic waste as it is already in the best interest of manufacturers to minimize waste.
The majority of plastics are used for packaging and are largely disposed of improperly, which greatly increases their likelihood of contamination. For this reason, recycling plastics from post-consumer sources is relatively complex and expensive. Given that this stream of waste is the largest and most problematic, finding a way to reuse this waste promises great environmental benefits such as a reduction in Global Warming Potential (GWP) and Cumulative Energy Demand (CED).
A case study comparing the environmental impact of two resins, Valox iQ and Lexan EXL (which contain 60% PCR polyethylene terephthalate and up 50% PCR polycarbonate respectively), against their unadulterated counterparts, showed significant GWP and CED reductions.
Valox iQ resin has the potential of 46-49% reduction in GWP and 54-57% reduction in CED, whereas Lexan EXL has the potential of 7-36% reduction in GWP and 10-45% reduction in CED, depending on the quantity of PCR polycarbonate it contains [2].
The use of PCR plastic can reduce both the amount of waste that would contaminate the environment and the waste that is already prevalent.
The environmental benefits from using PCR plastic can be summarized as follows:
Less plastic pollution and direct positive influence on ocean cleanup
Less dependence on fossil resources
Reduction of greenhouse gas emissions
Less water, energy and resource consumption
Less plastic that goes to landfills
Contribution to sustainability and a circular economy
Figure 2. Discarded plastic bottles stacked for recycling
The challenges and future trends of PCR plastics
With the current trend of plastic production deemed rather unsustainable, PCR plastic could be the way forward. The raw materials required for PCR plastics are not extracted from petroleum products like their virgin counterparts and are already considered worthless after being discarded. It's when they are properly sorted that they begin to have value.
Unlike virgin plastic, PCR plastic has price stability since most waste materials are not subject to fluctuating petroleum prices.
Although the efforts it takes to source, sort, and clean waste plastic from a myriad of shapes, sizes and colours are expensive, there are technologies in place that automate parts of this process, making it cheaper.
Generally, products made from PCR plastic are often not of the same quality as those made from virgin plastic due to the inevitable inhomogeneity in the waste plastic. However, new technologies from companies like Lavergne help produce high-quality, 100% PCR plastic products.
Currently, public awareness is a strong motivation as many consumers prefer to use eco-friendly products. Manufacturers are pivoting accordingly to satisfy this public interest. Laws, regulations, and their proper enforcement are required to keep pushing manufacturers into using PCR plastic. All in all, it's still early stages in the journey of PCR, but we are certainly moving in the right direction.
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