Recycling HolyGrail 2.0: Berry to manufacture Digimarc Barcodes for plastic hyper-sorting

23 Oct 2019 --- Fortune 500 global plastic manufacturer Berry has announced that it will begin manufacturing plastic packaging containing Digimarc Barcodes as a collaborator in the new recycling initiative, HolyGrail 2.0. The outcome of its predecessor, the Pioneer Project HolyGrail, led by Gian De Belder at Procter & Gamble, was the identification of digital watermarking, specifically, Digimarc Barcode. Digital watermarking is a promising technique to “tag” plastic substrates or print materials, including shrink sleeve, IML label, or paper label with an identity that could include attributes such as plastic type, product manufacturer, product SKU, food or non-food usage and composition of multi-layer foils.

Digimarc Barcode can be added to the printed label or sleeve artwork and/or embossed into the plastic itself. Larry Logan, Chief Evangelist for Digimarc, tells PackagingInsights that “for the first time, ‘hyper-sorting’ is possible based upon virtually any sorting parameters desired.”

“Today’s imaging systems are attempting to analyze and make a judgment on the properties of plastic through a probabilistic method. Digimarc inverts this model because the object is ‘telling’ the sorting system exactly what it is. This is a deterministic approach, with no false positives. With more accurate detection and sorting, facilities can increase the quantity and quality of recyclates to meet market demand and boost their revenue streams.”

Logan concedes that initially, facilities would need to add a separate module that contains the cameras and lighting necessary to detect Digimarc Barcode, but in the future, there would be no separate module and Digimarc would be integrated into the sorting housing to fit alongside the Near-infrared (NIR) detectors.

Digimarc will advise its long-time partner Berry on adding the digital watermark onto drink cups and thin wall lids for containers as part of the project. “We continue to be amazed at the possibilities that Digimarc brings to us and our customers. It is exciting to see decoration have the potential to make such a positive impact on the recovery of plastics,” notes Jennye Scott, Vice President of Creative Services for Berry.

Digimarc targets large-scale commercialization
Digimarc is still in the development stage with a series of escalating demonstrations toward industrial pilots and, ultimately, large-scale commercialization, Logan explains.

A typical Digimarc-enabled sorting line. Credit: Gian De Belder“The various applications of the Digimarc Platform can help consumer goods brands, retailers and manufacturers create products that contribute to a circular economy, by delivering higher quality and quantity of recyclables to create new, recycled products.”

“While the packaging manufacturers are at the start of the supply chain, education about recycling technology for consumer goods brands and retailers will lead to a greater demand for these products, accelerating demand for a solution. That is why Digimarc is targeting all players in the supply chain to ensure that the pursuit of a sustainable circular economy is at the forefront of production,” Logan adds.

In addition to its work with advancing recycling, Berry became an official signatory of the Ellen MacArthur New Plastics Economy Global Commitment in June. As part of the Global Commitment, Berry pledged that all of its plastic packaging will be reusable, recyclable or compostable by 2025.

In line with Berry’s sustainability strategy, Impact 2025, it is striving to increase the recovery of plastics through recycling. The company aims to accelerate its efforts toward a circular economy by “pushing the boundaries of innovation” in both material recovery and recyclable packaging.

By Joshua Poole

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