Mondi boosts Westland Kaas’ Maaslander cheese pack recyclability with mono-PP tray

11 Jun 2021 --- Mondi has partnered with cheese packaging company Hazeleger Kaas to create EnvelopeForm, a mono-material polypropylene (PP) solution for Westland Kaas’ Maaslander cheese slices. 

Mondi says most sliced cheese in Dutch supermarkets is still packaged in hard-to-recycle mixed material film. To improve recyclability, the new packaging has a PP thermoforming top and bottom web, while replacing the paper label with PP material. 

The lightweight solution replaces conventional heavier multi-layer plastic solutions, scrapping plastic use by 23 percent. “This makes it possible for us to save 9.2 tons of plastic per year,” says André Roeterdink, procurement manager of Hazeleger Kaas.

Steps toward fully recyclable
Moreover, Mondi’s mono-material meets the high oxygen and moisture barrier properties required to protect and keep cheese slices fresh during transport and on retailer shelves.

“Using our customer-centric approach, we knew we could help Hazeleger find the optimal sustainable solution for their cheese,” says Peter Jagt, regional sales Benelux consumer flexibles at Mondi.

“The new mono-material film performs well on [customers’] machines and keeps the cheese slices fresh on shelves. This, along with our commitment to quality, made it possible to provide Hazeleger with a sustainable new solution.” 

Notably, researchers from Wageningen University and Research recently highlighted how Dutch plastics recycling is currently held back by poorly recyclable packaging designs.

Click to EnlargeIn September, Mondi launched PerFORMing, a paper-based food tray with easy separation of paper and plastic film components for recycling.Mondi moves into recyclable cheese packaging
The Westland Kaas and Hazeleger Kaas launch follows Mondi’s other recent cheese packaging expeditions. In September, the global packaging supplier launched an 80 percent paper-based packaging solution for cold meats and cheese.

Mondi says the PerFORMing removable range is Europe’s first paper-based food tray that allows the paper and plastic film components to be easily separated for recycling.

“The removable plastic film is a co-extruded high barrier material that extends product shelf life,” Falk Paulsen, sales and business development director, Mondi Extrusion Solutions, shared with PackagingInsights at the time.

“When the product is fully consumed, the film can be separated from the formable paper shell and placed in the yellow bin, while the paper tray is recycled in the paper bin.”

The tray reduces Austrian dairy producer SalzburgMilch’s plastic by approximately 40 tons per year, and carbon footprint by two-thirds, compared to its previously used rigid plastic trays.

Edited by Anni Schleicher

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