Packaging for a Future

In a local collection campaign, a communal ‘garbage bank’ is set up for the collection, separation, logistic and management of waste. Consumers are paid for bringing in the waste to collection points such as schools.

Sustainability is gaining much attention lately. A study by the Nielsen Company in March revealed that about half of the consumers surveyed globally would choose environmentallyfriendly packaging over conventional convenience packs.

Food manufacturers and retailers are therefore pressurized to make active contributions to protect the environment by considering if their packaging systems are using renewable resources and if the packaging could be recycled. More companies are also choosing packaging based on sustainability over cost. Wal-Mart, for example, has announced its goal to reduce packaging across its global supply chain by 2013, and its suppliers are to save resources by 5%.

Of the packaging systems available today, aseptic carton packs are considered to be the most environmentally-friendly. About 75% of these carton packs are made from cardboard, which are made from reusable wood. With responsible and sustainable use, the natural raw material would continue to be available to future generations. To recycle these products, there needs to be efficient collection and sorting systems. However, the organization and implementation of national guidelines for these systems vary from country to country.

Recycling packaging
Cellulose fibers in beverage carton packs are separated from other materials (such as polyethylene [accounts for 21% of carton packs] and aluminum [4%]) by soaking them in water. The pulp obtained is used to manufacture a range of paper and cardboard products. Thin coatings of polyethylene and aluminum from carton packs could also be recycled. They are used by the cement industry to substitute fossil crude oil and bauxite. Polyethylene fraction could be converted into a gaseous state which, like natural gas, could be used to generate energy. New recycling processes are also able to convert polyethylene into paraffi n. Aluminum could be recovered to its pure state as well. Recycling aseptic carton packs is common in the European Union (EU). According to recycling company ReCarton, Germany has a system for countrywide collection and sorting of carton packaging that contributes to a recycling rate of 60%. The Alliance of Beverage Cartons and the Environment (ACE) says the EU has an average recycling rate of 30% for aseptic carton packs. Countries such as the US, Canada, Australia and Taiwan are also working on recycling projects and national recycling programs.

Recycling in Thailand
Recycling is not a well-established concept in Asia. In Thailand, recycling is at its infancy stage with activities often initiated by packaging producers and environmental organizations. With the growing economy and modernization of the cities, consumers are now buying more packaged products, especially food, which is consequently causing waste and environmental problems. According to Recycling Laws International Country Pages and the Thailand Environment Monitor, in 2003, the country produced about 22 million tons of waste of which around 17% was recycled.

The government has therefore taken measures such as building better infrastructure and facilities to protect the environment and for better public health. Many waste collection and sorting projects have also started. Selected Thai communities now have developed successful models for an effective waste management system that involves city councils, townspeople and enterprises. The ‘best practice’ experiences from these models were sometimes replicated to other cities via the central government institutions. Lessons learned from these ventures were sometimes incorporated into centralized regulations on waste management. These initiatives had also brought ecological awareness and encouraged citizens to act responsibly towards the environment (such as sorting waste independently to facilitate recycling efforts).

The BCG projects are targeted at municipal authorities and schools. Consisting of three phases, each project has educational sessions on separating beverage carton packs from waste, collecting and handling the packaging.

• Industry initiatives
The Thailand Institute of Packaging Management for Sustainable Environment (TIPMSE) was founded in 2005 with the support of the Federation of Thai Industries (FTI), an affi liation of 22 organizations from the packaging and food industry. It supports the development of a wide-ranging, sustainable program for the management of packaging waste. By 2010, it aims to reduce packaging waste from public collection by 10%. TIPMSE members such as Unilever, Coca Cola, Nestlé and SIG Combibloc are also working to address impact of ‘green’ taxes that the government is planning to impose in the future.

The recycling process for carton packs.

Systems used in recycling carton packs are gradually being developed in Thailand as well. Through a range of initiatives and targeted recycling projects, more consumers are now recycling the raw materials of the carton packs instead of dumping them into landfill sites. According to a 2008 report entitled Recycling Laws International Country Pages, about 30,000 to 40,000 tons of empty beverage cartons end up in landfills every year.

The Beverage Carton Group (BCG) established in 2005 has recently organized a collection and recycling chain for used carton packs with the TIPMSE. Its “Beverage Carton Collection Campaign” aims to encourage consumers to collect used carton packs and provide them to designated recycling channels.

In a local collection campaign, a communal ‘garbage bank’ is set up for the collection, separation, logistic and management of waste. Consumers are paid for bringing in the waste to collection points such as selected communities, schools, the Saleng (small-scale waste collectors with three-wheeled bicycles and trailers), waste wholesale dealers and material recyclers. The first waste collection campaigns were run in six communities in 2007. Designated collection points were set up, and waste dealers were invited to bid to run the operation and to distribute the recyclable waste profitably to recycling firms.

• Recycling efforts and successes
The BCG projects are targeted at municipal authorities and schools. Consisting of three phases, each project has educational sessions on separating beverage carton packs from waste, collecting and handling the packaging. These training sessions were run in 385 schools with displays and informative materials. The public was taught the basic features of beverage carton recycling. According to the BCG, about 250 schools participated in the collection program last year and over 18,000kg of carton packs were collected from communities and schools. As part of a collection campaign in Tesabal, a municipality between Bangkok and the Gulf of Thailand, milk for school children is now packaged in carton packs instead of plastic bottles.

According to the latest SIG Combibloc Global Market Research report, nearly one billion liters of juice and milk in carton packs were sold in Thailand in 2006. Meanwhile, Bangkok´s Independent Newspaper in the same year reported that about 10% of the carton packs were recycled to make furniture such as school desks and building materials for houses. Paperboard fibers were also separated from polyethylene and aluminum. The paperboard fraction was circulated through the paper milling system to produce paper products such as stiff packaging board and corrugated cardboard. Building materials such as membranes for roofing tiles were also manufactured from the remaining composite.

www.sig.biz