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PET trays are common packaging for foodstuffs such as meat, fish, fruit and vegetables or for take-away products. They are also widely used in the non-food sector. However, PET trays cannot be recycled to a high standard with the technology currently in use. With the “CircuTray-UP” project, we are closing the loop for PET trays by establishing a value chain from recycling to the production of food-compliant PET tray packaging from recycled materials. We are working on new sorting and processing technologies as well as film processing and packaging production.

For the production and processing of flexible plastic and fiber webs, a homogeneous web tension distribution is crucial for quality. However, new low-complexity, natural fiber-based or recycled materials in particular exhibit more fluctuating properties and narrower process windows than established materials. Flatness deviations, wrinkles, inclusions or processing-induced stresses have a far more critical effect here. In order to prevent quality fluctuations and downtimes, it is necessary to detect deviations as early as possible and react to them.

We intensively investigated the recycling of medical packaging and products in 2024 as part of the Fraunhofer Cluster of Excellence Circular Plastics Economy CCPE with colleagues from the Advanced Recycling working group. Medical products such as resuscitation bags or infusion sets made of multi-plastic composites were processed into separate and pure plastic recyclates and blister packaging was also recycled. A high volume of previously unused post-consumer waste has been identified for the latter in particular. It is generated, for example, by pharmacies that sort out or accept expired medicines or in the sorting fractions of the light packaging collection of the dual systems. Using our solvent-based recycling process, the research team led by Tanja Fell succeeded in processing it into pure PVC recyclates and high-quality chlorine-free aluminum fractions. The process currently uses the CreaSolv® solvent mixture developed jointly by Fraunhofer IVV and CreaCycle. It has already been used in past projects (e.g. “Refined aluminum”, funding code 033RK011B) and has since been successfully evaluated several times (e.g. bilateral project with VinylPlus in 2023).

In the BMBF-funded “Protein Layers” project in the NewFoodSystems innovation area, we have developed edible coatings and casings made from alternative proteins such as plant, algae or fungal proteins. This keeps food for longer and reduces losses along the value chain. In the project, 20 protein raw materials were examined for their chemical, thermal, rheological and functional properties. The focus was on factors such as protein content, film formation, viscosity and gelling properties.

What does the path to a sustainable circular economy for flexible plastic packaging look like? In the EU project CIRCULAR FoodPack we have shown how post-consumer recyclates can be used to produce packaging that is suitable for direct food contact and meets the high standards for food protection and safety. We are happy to invite you to the final event on November 28, 2024 in Brussels.

In a research project together with industrial partners and a Belgian research partner, we investigated how plant proteins change due to various high-pressure processes. Pea protein was selected as an example in view of the increased use of regionally available plant-based raw materials for sustainable foods. Local producers in particular are to be supported in this way.

Optimum machinability of flexible packaging materials is crucial for efficient and safe processing. The realistic assessment of the dynamic coefficient of friction is particularly important when switching to recyclable packaging materials. As part of the WIPANO research project we have developed a new, realistic test method for determining the real coefficient of friction and converted it into a standard (VDMA standard sheet).

On June 1, 2024, our Business Unit Manager Ines Lieske took over the scientific project management of the "Hygienic Production" working group of the Industrievereinigung für Lebensmitteltechnologie und Verpackung e.V. (Industry Association for Food Technology and Packaging e.V.).