Deutsches Institut für Normung (DIN) releases a specification for deinking flexible packaging films
Sustainability is built into Flint Group’s DNA. We champion products with a low environmental impact. Through our PRISM platform, a three-pronged approach to sustainability focused on Product, Planet, and People, we are committed to driving positive change. Flint Group supports customers in reducing waste and preserving the planet’s natural resources.
Given the pressing nature of the climate challenge, Flint Group recognises that more can be done to develop printing practices focused on sustainability. That’s why we’ve joined forces with partners from the flexible packaging industry to build a new path for deinking and recycling.
Both polyethylene (PE) and polypropylene (PP) are widely used in flexible packaging design for food and consumer goods. These materials are popular due to their unique properties, which include high barrier performance to extend product shelf life, being lightweight, and requiring less energy for production compared to other packaging materials.
Increasing consumer interest in sustainability and legislation (such as the proposed changes to the Packaging & Packaging Waste Directive) motivates the printing and packaging industry to offer collection and recycling services for flexible packaging material to support a circular economy for flexible plastic films.
Recycling Process:
In mechanical recycling, the predominant method, the first step is collecting post-consumer materials, followed by sorting and categorising. Because there are various types of plastic materials, machines at recycling plants sort by polymer and colour, to enable recycling in the next step of the process.
After materials have been sorted, they are washed to remove labels, adhesives, dirt, and food residue. Next, the plastic is fed into shredders to break the material down into much smaller pieces (i.e. flakes or shreds) that can be used in the next step of processing.
The final step is extruding and compounding, where the particles of shredded plastics are transformed into valuable materials for manufacturers. This is done by melting and crushing together the shreds to form pellets.
Printing inks on Packaging:
In the aforementioned, printing inks are not typically removed from packaging films, which can interfere with the recycling process. In these cases, the resulting recycled material can be discoloured, can cause a rancid odour, and can have reduced mechanical properties. Because of this, these materials are generally down-cycled. (I.e. down-cycled into lower-quality products like ‘plastic wood’.) Alternatively, removing the ink before the re-granulation step in the recycling process leads to higher-quality recyclate in terms of colour, odour, and gel particles formed during the recycling process.
To bring more attention to this situation and provide guidelines for recycling of plastic based packaging, Flint Group, and a consortium of parties across the flexible packaging value chain, (ink producers, printers, recyclers, and recycling machine manufacturers) have teamed up to define an evaluation method for deinking via a new DIN specification focused on the recycling of printed polymer packaging.
The new DIN specification cites that inks, or finished packages, must be evaluated for de-ink ability and which conditions (i.e. a hot washing caustic aqueous solution or via certain surfactants) are needed for complete de-inking. Three conditions are defined to give a clear overview of whether a package or label can be de-inked under mild, medium, or harsh conditions. Ultimately, this helps the flexible packaging value chain work on easy-to-deink printing inks.
The new common standard provides brand owners, packaging converters, and recyclers with a framework to evaluate deinking technologies to use in their recycling processes. Furthermore, it provides assurance that deinking technologies can be employed to provide high-quality recyclate that can be maintained in a closed-loop circular economy. The result is material that can be used in new packaging films rather than ‘down-cycled’.
Currently, most of Flint Group’s Nitrocellulose-based (NC) inks in Europe for surface printing meet these requirements and are branded under the VertixCode1 and MatrixCode2 brand names. Importantly, Flint Group will have data available to inform customers if an ink series can meet the requirements in the DIN Spec 914963 by end of 2024.
At Flint Group, sustainability is one of our core values. More than that, we are committed to accelerating our progress on protecting the environment, through our PRISM framework and through supporting initiatives like the DIN Spec. As regulations around deinking and recycling evolve, our customers can rest assured that we are doing everything possible to stay ahead of compliance and support circularity in packaging, on a global level and regionally through our dedicated experts.
To learn more about Flint Group’s work on the environment, download a copy of our Sustainability Report or learn more about our Sustainability platform by visiting our website - click here.
If you have any questions or want to discuss how we can support your business's sustainability goals, you can email us at info@flintgrp.com.
1VertixCode – for Flexographic applications.
2MatrixCode – for Rotogravure applications.
3More information can be found at: https://www.din.de/en/meta/search/61764!search?_csrf=5797427a-6460-474e-b20c-49ccf83c3830&query=91496
4Determines the thickness of the plastic pieces by placing the shredded plastic into a wind tunnel, where thinner pieces float while thicker pieces stay at the bottom.