Green Products
PCR, Bio-Based Jars
PCR jars and caps are produced using PP resin recycled from packages once destined for landfills. PCR PP jars are available in 12 styles, while caps are offered in three versions. The firm’s other eco-friendly packaging option, bio-based jars, debuted this fall. The jars are made with a hybrid resin comprising natural tapioca and potato blended with traditional petroleum-based PP.
CSI-Cosmolab, Oxnard, CA, www.csi-cosmolab.com
Biopolymer
Naturacell is a new biopolymer made from cellulose, a material derived from sustainable natural resources such as trees and cotton. The polymer is suited for molding primary packaging components such as perfume caps and jar lids, as well as secondary packaging. According to its supplier, Naturacell’s benefit is that, unlike many other green polymers, it can be processed using existing equipment, with no special tooling or capital investments needed.
Rotuba, Linden, NJ, www.rotuba.com
Ecocert-Approved
European agency Ecocert has certified a supplier’s Slim and Victoria packaging lines. The firm also says that its research has resulted in a new, patented material called 3D. The material contains PA, a plastic material obtained from castor plants. The new 3D material was used in the firm’s Victoria and Alexandra packaging lines.
Lumson S.p.A., Capergnanica, Italy, www.lumson.com
PLA Components
A firm’s new Sustainable Family line of products includes an array of eco-friendly packaging made from PLA. The cosmetic components manufactured from PLA include lipstick containers, compacts, pots, and jars, all offered with options for custom colors, decoration, and various sizes.
Arminak & Associates, Duarte, CA, www.arminak-associates.com
Shopping Bags
ZeroTree bags are made from green materials and techniques that reduce reliance on trees, help to minimize the use of water, and reduce harmful chemicals and air pollution. The bags can be produced from an array of eco-friendly materials, including stone, abaca plants, bamboo, jute, recycled plastic bottles, recycled PP, and cotton.
Noble Gift Packaging, Cedar Grove, NJ, www.noblepackaging.com
PLA Components
A firm now offers cosmetic components manufactured from PLA. The resin is suitable for injection molding, and the firm can use it to create compacts, small pots, and lipstick containers that are partially or completely made from PLA.
Arrowpak Inc., Richmond Hill, NY, www.arrowpak.com
PCR Tubes
WWPledge is a supplier’s line of environmentally friendly packaging. The company has announced that the WWPledge line will feature a complete selection of tubes made from PCR resin. The first product in the line is a 60-mm tube made with 85% PCR. Small compacts made of biodegradable PLA resin are also available.
World Wide Packaging Inc., Florham Park, NJ, www.wwpinc.com
PLA Colorant
Color concentrates are designed for use with PLA resins and blends. The firm has developed three series of colorants for use in clear or opaque bottles, shopping bags, films, and injection-molded items. Each series differs in terms of its carrier resin, which is either made from PLA or polyesters that are compatible with PLA.
Teknor Color Co., Rosemont, IL, www.teknorapex.com
RPET Bags
PCR PET can be used to create bags, including those for cosmetic products. The raw material stems from recycled soda and water bottles. Once the recycled bottles are cleaned and processed into chips, they are then shredded into fibers and woven into threads. The threads can be used to make multiple textures and weaves, which can mimic the textures of mesh, nylon, canvas, and even nonwoven materials.
Design & Source Productions Inc., New York, NY, www.designandsource.com
PCR PET
Heavy-wall PET bottles are produced from 100% PCR in stock and custom designs. Virtually nonsqueezable, the bottles not only offer the higher-end look and feel of heavy-wall PET, they retain the low gas-vapor transmission rates and durability associated with PET.
Impressions Packaging Corp., Peachtree City, GA, www.impressionspackaging.com
Green from All Angles
A packaging supplier offers several choices for producing greener packaging. Brands have the option of having their packages produced using 100% renewable hydropower at the firm’s facility. The company has also developed a proprietary resin, which it says has properties similar to ABS. The material is certified as compostable and can be molded into many types of packages such as sticks for deodorants, display boxes, and compacts.
Lombardi Design and Manufacturing, Freeport, NY, www.lombardi.cc
Colored PLA
A company offers the unique option of PLA cosmetic compacts and other packaging that can be tinted in attention-getting colors. In addition, the firm offers a wide selection of bamboo packaging. Paper pallets are also available.
The Packaging Co., Long Beach, CA, www.thepkgco.com
Paper and Plastic Options
A supplier offers many environmentally friendly packaging options, including PCR packaging, preconsumer recycled plastic products using virgin plastic waste, and recycled paper/cardboard packaging. In addition, the firm has developed three-layer coextruded tubes that incorporate 33%-PCR HDPE in the middle layer. For all of its PCR products, the firm uses certified PCR-resin suppliers.
International Cosmetic Suppliers, North Point, Hong Kong, www.ics-world.com
Biodegradable Film
Cellulose acetate film is made of wood pulp from managed forests. The film can be used for laminations, carton windows, tape, and labels. It is suited for the cosmetics industry, as it can be used to laminate cartons for perfumes and lotions. Major advantages of the film include clarity and high-end glossy and scuff-resistant finishes.
Clarifoil, Derby, UK, www.clarifoil.com
Tree-Free Paper
FiberStone paper is a new tree-free paper made 80% from calcium carbonate, or limestone, and 20% from a nontoxic HDPE resin binder. The paper can be used as a substitute for synthetic paper and film, premium coated paper, recycled paper, and PVC sheets.
Natural Source Printing Inc., www.naturalsourceprinting.com
Shrink Sleeves
Earthfirst PLA shrink sleeves offer an alternative to traditional petroleum-based shrink sleeves. The PLA film is compostable and environmentally friendly and offers most of the performance characteristics of the firm’s other films. It prints well, shrinks well, and machines well. As another option, the firm also offers PETG shrink film, which it says is considered more environmentally friendly than PVC.
Seal-It Inc., a division of Printpack Inc., Farmingdale, NY, www.sealitinc.com
Shrink Sleeve
Biosleeve is a supplier’s biodegradable and compostable shrink sleeve made from PLA. The firm has also developed new generations of inks that are specially formulated for heat-shrinkable films. The inks are printed with solvent-free printing techniques such as retrogravure, UV flexographic, and serigraphy printing.
Sleever International, Metropolitaine, France, www.sleever.com
PCR Bottles
A supplier’s wide range of bottles—including Boston Rounds, Cylinders, Jefferson Rounds, and Union Ovals—can now incorporate PCR levels of at least 25%. Higher concentrations of PCR, in some cases up to 100%, are also available. According to the company, the barrier, impact, and compatibility of PCR are relatively the same compared with that of virgin resin. The firm says that it can also add colorant to bottles to mask the slightly yellow shade of PCR.
O. Berk Co., Union, NJ, www.oberk.com
Postconsumer Plastic
A firm has entered into an exclusive supply agreement with Closed Loop UK Ltd., which the supplier says is the only UK producer of 100%-PCR PP and PETG. The supplier says that it will use Closed Loop’s PCR plastics in a new range of products for the cosmetics industry.
Cosmopak Corp., Port Washington, NY, www.cosmopak.com
Labels
A firm offers its new 100%-PCR Envi label stock for bottles. The label substrate prints, embosses, and stamps very well. Designed for the personal care industry as well as the wine and gourmet food market, Envi labels are manufactured carbon neutral using 100% renewable electricity.
Monadnock Paper Mills, Bennington, NH, www.mpm.com
PCR Tubes, Closures
A firm can produce tubes with up to 70% PCR in the tube body, up to 60% PCR in the tube head, and 100% PCR in the tube closure. The company says that it has been producing PCR tubes longer than any other tube manufacturer, since 2001.
CCL Tube, Los Angeles, CA, www.ccltube.com
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