EcoCore® is helping businesses meet new sustainability criteria and avoid additional taxes and charges that would see plastic packaging costs increase when consumers are feeling the effects of rising inflation on available income.
Plastic packaging taxes and levies are becoming significant features of economies worldwide as countries look for ways to encourage the use of more sustainable containers. For example, today marks the arrival of the UK Plastic Packaging Tax. This will see all single-use plastic packaging, made with less than 30% recycled material, incur an additional charge of £200 per ton.
New charges are being introduced across the EU too. Started in January 2021, the 'EU Plastic Packaging Levy' has meant that countries are paying €0.80 for each kilogram of non-recycled plastic packaging waste they create. Member states are free to implement their own ways to meet the charges. Italy, Netherlands and Spain, for example, have already put forward proposals to pass on these costs to producers, retailers and consumers.
EcoCore's unique features are helping brands and converters create more sustainable packaging solutions, meeting the challenges that packaging taxes and levies are presenting in number of ways:
1. Reuse transition — reusables are not subject to most new charges, and EcoCore is making it easy for businesses to make the move without increasing costs. The innovative foamtech may be used for everything from robust mouldings optimised for reuse systems (e.g. reusable cup schemes) to ultra-lightweight convenience reusables supplied to consumers at a minimal cost (e.g. to-go containers for food).
2. Lightweighting — with most taxes and levies on single-use packaging being introduced on a weight basis, reducing the amount of plastic used is key. EcoCore is helping FMCG brands reduce the amount of plastic they use in packaging with typical weight savings up to 50%.
3. Recycled materials — packaging that is easy to recycle and includes sufficient recyclate will avoid new charges that are designed to boost recycling. EcoCore is recycled plastic ready and has already been tested with grades from our materials partner Borealis, which has a wide range of chemically and mechanically recovered resins. EcoCore mouldings are also made from polypropylene (PP #5 ) which is widely recycled to ensure that all packaging has the best chance of being recovered.
If you want to know more about how Bockatech will help you improve sustainability and packaging performance get in contact.