The world of packaging is changing quickly. Legislators, food brands, and society at large are all demanding packaging that is less wasteful. At the same time, consumers don’t want to compromise on food safety and convenience.
The latest innovation from Covestro provides a solution to meet these growing needs: a partially bio-based barrier coating resin, Decovery® CQ 6010, which helps ‘close the loop’ for recyclable paper packaging.
Reducing waste by replacing PE and aluminum layers
Many packaged food products are sensitive to moisture, so controlling the moisture vapor transmission rate (MVTR) is critical to maintaining the quality of the food. To protect the product inside a package, paper and board food packaging is often laminated with polyethylene (PE) or aluminum. These materials limit the packaging’s recyclability, meaning it often ends up going to landfill or being incinerated. Covestro’s innovative barrier coating resin reduces waste by replacing these PE or aluminum layers in paper food packaging to make it recyclable.
By enabling low MVTR values, Decovery® CQ 6010 provides a moisture barrier to protect the food, as well as delivering good oil and grease resistance. This makes it suitable for use in packaging for a wide range of food, from dry high-fat products such as chocolate bars to ice cream, frozen food, and fresh fruit. The resin is made with 37 percent plant-based and transparently sourced ingredients, such as bark, castor beans, and corn. This substantially reduces its carbon footprint in comparison to virgin PE and standard fossil-based coatings.
Davide Reverdito Bove, Sector Marketing Manager Printing & Packaging at Covestro: “While PE laminates do a good job of protecting food contents, they make food packaging virtually impossible to recycle. As a result, a lot of them go to landfill or are incinerated. Our new resin is a game-changer in addressing this issue. It gives food producers and packaging makers an excellent opportunity to deliver the protection that packaging requires while having less impact on the environment. That’s just one reason why we are so proud of this new coating, and so excited to be telling the world about it.”