“No excuse for single-use”: Tri-Star Packaging launches UK’s first rPET cutlery

24 Jul 2019 --- Tri-Star Packaging has declared its brand the first in the UK to launch disposable cutlery made from recycled materials, which are also fully recyclable. Over the past 18 months, Tri-Star Packaging and its manufacturer suppliers have invested in NPD featuring recycled PET (rPET), such as Jewel, a new range of salad containers made from 100 percent rPET, debuted by the company earlier this week.

In line with calls for an industry-wide shift towards virgin plastic waste reduction, the new cutlery range incorporates 97 percent rPET, with the aim of reducing the amount of post-consumer waste being sent to landfills or ending up in rivers, streams and oceans.

“We use 97 percent rPET as opposed to 100 percent because we have to introduce three percent of heat stabilizing additive to give the product its rigidity and heat resistance performance,” Kevin Curran, Founder of Tri-Star Packaging tells PackagingInsights.

Single-use plastics, such as disposable cutlery, are coming under heat from an increasingly eco-conscious consumer world. This has recently been cemented in EU regulation in the shape of the EU Single-Use Plastics Directive, which was finalized in May. In a bid to tackle marine litter, the 10 single-use products most commonly found on European beaches will be banned. The ban covers cutlery, among other disposable items, which are made of expanded polystyrene and all products made of oxo-degradable plastic. Member states now have two years to transpose the legislation in their national law.

“While consultations are still ongoing in the UK and European Parliament, the landscape of proposed legislation on single-use plastics is constantly shifting,” notes Curran. “As part of our own policy to promote the circular economy it was important for us to be proactive and to start making a positive change now by moving toward more sustainable materials.”Tri-Star Packaging's new cutlery range incorporates 97 percent rPET. 

“Products that are recyclable and manufactured from a high percentage of recycled content, such as our cutlery, remain a viable sustainable solution where no suitable alternative is available. Given that rPET is recyclable upon collection, this presents a very quick and very influential move if the right waste stream is in place,” adds Curran.

Communication of environmental benefits to end-users is crucial, and in this context, Tri-Star Packaging states that it will be taking measures to ensure its packaging is adequately labeled with explanations of materials sourcing and how the product should be recycled.

“But what about items which are too small to do this, such as our new rPET cutlery range?” asks Tri-Star Packaging Founder Kevin Curran. “We’ve thought about the need to take these important messages to the consumer. As there’s no room to include it on the items themselves, we will be supplying window stickers with each pack, designed to remind consumers about their role in the environmental journey – from coffee cup recycling to water bottle refilling.”

“With this latest product launch, Tri-Star is contributing to the packaging’s industry’s goal to create a 100 percent closed-loop circular economy,” adds Curran. 

A circular economy on the horizon
The push towards a sustainable economy is paving avenues for innovation. Earlier this month, Evian teamed up with recycling expert charity RECOUP to supply the Wimbledon 2019 tennis championship with bottled water packaged in 100 percent rPET, while increasing the available number of recycling bins on the premises.

Also this month, natural mineral water brand Valvert in Belgium launched its new bottle made entirely from rPET, a first for Nestlé in Europe. This innovation was cited as a step further towards meeting Nestlé's commitment to increase the rPET content in its water bottles to 35 percent globally by 2025.

Similarly, PepsiCo has announced that premium bottled water brand LIFEWTR will be packaged in 100 percent rPET and that bubly sparkling water will no longer be packaged in plastic by 2020. Bubly will instead be packaged in aluminum cans. The company's AQUAFINA water brand will also offer aluminum can packaging in US food service outlets, while the brand tests the move in retail.

In a drive towards phasing-out plastic completely, Tetra Pak has become “the first carton packaging company” to launch paper straws in Europe, in a move that brings the supplier a step closer to delivering an entirely plant-based carton package. Made from FSC-certified paper and recyclable with the rest of the package, the new paper straw will be available initially for two small size carton packages commonly used for dairy and beverage products for children: Tetra Brik Aseptic 200 Base and Tetra Brik Aseptic 200 Base Crystal.

By Benjamin Ferrer