Cold chain packaging manufacturer, Hydropac, is preparing to launch HydroPure™, a water ice pack featuring an innovative built-in freeze indicator that changes the physical appearance of the pack once it has reached optimum freeze temperature.
Developed specifically for food manufacturers, meal kit providers, online retailers and pet food brands, HydroPure™ has been designed to maximise cold-chain performance as well as offering environmental, functional and commercial packaging advantages.
The upcoming launch is timely news for brands as many review their packaging strategies following the introduction of the UK’s Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) legislation.
With new rules on how packaging materials are assessed and charged, HydroPure™ could help reduce packaging disposal costs outlined in the new EPR fee structure.
A unique built-in visual freeze indicator
HydroPure™ ice packs are black by design - heat absorption is exactly what an ice pack is engineered to do - which is what makes the effect of the freeze indicator unmistakable.
As the pack freezes completely, the black colour appears to ‘crack’ before turning pure white from the core outward, giving warehouse teams immediate confirmation that the pack is fully frozen and ready for use.
This simple visual cue removes guesswork from the packing process and helps improve consistency across high-volume fulfilment operations.
Three-fold added value for brands
HydroPure™ offers the cold-chain performance brands rely on - without the disposal costs of gel packs.
- Environmental value – Eliminating gel from the pack removes a refrigerant that is difficult to recycle and often ends up in landfill, helping brands reduce the environmental footprint of their cold chain packaging without any compromise on cooling performance.
- Commercial value - Because purified water isn't classified as chargeable packaging material in the same way as gel, HydroPure™ offers the potential for substantially lower EPR liabilities - a cost that is fast becoming a board-level concern for food, meal kit and pet food brands as EPR fees scale with packaging volume.
- Functional - The pack's built-in visual freeze indicator removes uncertainty from warehouse operations, giving fulfilment teams immediate, unmistakable confirmation that a pack is fully frozen and ready to use.
Changing packaging regulations
As manufacturers assess the implications of Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR), packaging composition is becoming an increasingly important commercial consideration.
Hydropac has received written confirmation from Valpak, one of the UK’s largest and longest-established packaging compliance schemes, that water-filled and gel-filled ice packs are reported differently under current EPR requirements.
For a water-filled ice pack, only the plastic film is reported as packaging, with the water content excluded. For a gel-filled pack, the plastic film is reported as plastic and the gel content is reported separately within the "Other" material category. Where the product is classified as household packaging, both these reported weights are therefore included in the calculation of EPR waste-disposal fees.
What does this mean in practice?
Hydropac's analysis of the current EPR fee structure suggests a standard 500g water ice pack like HydroPure™ could attract disposal fees of around ½ a penny per unit, compared with approximately 14.3p for an equivalent gel pack, because both the plastic film and gel contents are classified as chargeable packaging material.
Based on current fee rates and volume assumptions, this represents an additional disposal cost of approximately 13.75p per gel pack, which could equate to around £13,750 per year for a business handling 50 tonnes of packaging annually, increasing to more than £137,000 at 500 tonnes.
Guidance surrounding some aspects of EPR continues to evolve and Hydropac is continuing to press the Environment Agency and Defra for explicit product-specific guidance covering coolants and ice packs. However, Valpak’s written advice provides a clear specialist compliance basis for this comparison.
Colin Rowland, Managing Director at Hydropac, said:
"Cold chain packaging has traditionally been judged on one thing: whether it keeps products cold. That will always be essential, but businesses are now asking additional questions.
"How quickly does it freeze? How long does it protect products? Is it simple to dispose of? What does it mean for future packaging costs?
"HydroPure™ has been developed to help answer all of those questions as well as improving consistency across packaging operations thanks for its unique visual freeze indicator."
“It delivers exceptional cooling performance without the environmental impacts of gel-based packs, not to mention the potential it offers for substantially lower EPR costs."
Further background on HydroPure™ is available ahead of launch at: HydroPure™.