In a competitive marketplace, packaging has to efficiently protect food, while attracting customers, but there is an increasing focus on its sustainability credentials. Many claims are made, but Greiner Packaging UK & Ireland asks: 'How do you know the CO2e impact of your plastic packaging?’, and goes on to question how you can properly know what percentage of post-consumer waste a pack contains, will it be liable for the UK plastic packaging tax, and does it have EU food approval?
“We are convinced that sustainable economic success can only be achieved with innovative strength and ecological and social responsibility,” says Sustainability and Innovation Manager Rachel Sheldon. “For the last few years, we have been working hard and investing heavily to ensure we are manufacturing the most sustainable packaging solutions, and providing the relevant third-party certifications to back up every claim that we make.”
How do you know the CO2e impact of your plastic packaging?
“Calculating the „carbon footprint“ of packaging has become increasingly important, and wherever possible, we have been determined to be able to prove what we have achieved, product by product,” says Rachel Sheldon.
“I am excited to announce that we can now provide Sustainability Passports for most of our plastic packaging products, calculating the cradle to gate CO2e values. The calculation method and underlying model have been reviewed and validated by TÜV Austria and are compliant with ISO14067:2018.”
How do you know the percentage of post-consumer waste in your PET packaging?
“All of our PET packaging is certified for its percentage of post-consumer waste, by Sustainable Certifications Group (SCG), and is compliant with the Sustainably Sourced Certification Scheme.”
SCG’s Sustainability Director Andy Whyle said: “SCG’s certification independently verifies that Greiner’s products are manufactured with 30% or more recycled PET, providing proof of exemption from the UK’s Plastic Packaging Tax. We are collaborating with Greiner and OPRL to promote validated recycled content, facilitating compliance for supply chain actors and helping them avoid HMRC prosecution, whilst accounting for the carbon saved in the recycling process."
How do you know if your packaging has EU food approval?
“Two years ago, with a UK first – the European Food Safety Authority approved the decontamination process used at our factory in Dungannon, Northern Ireland, to recycle post‐consumer PET into food contact materials, and we are now compliant with EU Regulation 2022/1616,” says Rachel.
“We have also recently invested in the latest flatbed technology to expand our capabilities into the EU food approved rPET tray market.”
Taking a collective industry position
“As a business, Greiner Packaging takes a collective industry position and wherever possible, leads through example. We are members of RECOUP, the official RecyClass auditor for rigid plastic packaging in the UK, and we were one of the founding members of the UK Plastics Pact,” Rachel concludes.
“Since Greiner Packaging first introduced its K3® cardboard-plastic innovation in 2007, there has been continuous investment at our UK manufacturing facility. But, alongside investing to create new packaging solutions, there has been a constant focus on improving our environmental sustainability performance and pursuing our goal to achieve a circular economy.”