Parkside creates compostable loose tea packs with Futamura’s NatureFlex cellulose films

06 Dec 2021 --- UK-based Parkside has equipped Bird & Blend with compostable packaging for its loose tea. The solution utilizes Futamura’s compostable bio-based paper and metalized NatureFlex cellulose films, manufactured from sustainably-sourced wood pulp.

“As a business, we are acutely aware of the scrutiny our industry can sometimes face when it comes to [environmental] sustainability and ethical integrity,” notes Matt Hendon, operations director at Bird & Blend. “Our tea bags are already plastic-free, so the obvious next step was to boost the environmental credentials of our packaging.”

Parkside’s solution provides high barrier performance, maintaining optimal freshness and extending shelf life. Ultimately, the design helps to protect natural resources without compromising performance.

The packaging reportedly breaks down entirely within 26 weeks, depending on the efficiency of the compost setting. During the composting process, the materials then return to the soil, leaving no adverse effects on the environment.

Compostable appetite
Parkside’s product development team dedicated almost a decade of research and development to its compostable laminates. As a result, the company now boasts over 20 TUV-accredited compostable structures, forming its award-winning Park2Nature range.

“The steps taken by Bird & Blend reflect a key message we are seeing for the packaging sector, which is that consumers are getting under the skin of “sustainability,” and want clear actions they can take to play their part on environmental protection. Compostable packaging is a very strong route of approach in this regard,” explains Staci Bye, new business development manager at Parkside.Futamura’s NatureFlex films are wastewater biodegradable and meet all global standards for industrial composting (Credit: Futamura).

“Bird & Blend heard about our industry-leading packaging and approached us intending to develop something more sustainable and aesthetically pleasing for the brand’s fantastic range of loose teas, and we’ve certainly delivered.”

According to Innova Market Insights, 28% percent of UK consumers see compostability as an environmentally sustainable end-of-life disposal method for packaging, behind biodegradability (29%) but ahead of recyclability (24%) and reusability (14%).

Meanwhile, a Tipa-commissioned review found “landslide expert support” for compostable packaging across the EU to reduce plastic contamination in organic waste streams and increase the amount of food waste captured for recycling.

Under its Park2Nature range, Parkside has also equipped fruit and vegetable home delivery service Riverford with fully compostable tomato boxes and home-compostable salad bags.

Futamura’s cellulose films
Compostable bioplastics offer a viable alternative to conventional plastic for hard-to-recycle small format items, like individual candies or tea. Futamura’s NatureFlex films, made from sustainably-sourced cellulose, are wastewater biodegradable and meet all global standards for industrial composting and the OK Compost Home standard for backyard composting.

“While we strongly advocate proper waste management, the fact is, if our wrapper were to end up in the environment, its impact would be less damaging than a plastic film that would take hundreds of years to break down,” Andy Sweetman, sales and marketing director EMEA at Futamura, previously explained to PackagingInsights.

Futamura also recently added Cool German lollipops and Belgian Ice Cream Group to its NatureFlex customers.Bird & Blend’s new packaging reportedly breaks down within 26 weeks, depending on the compost setting.

Bioplastics boom
European Bioplastics (EUBP) recently revealed global bioplastics production will more than triple over the next five years (2021-2026), according to market data compiled in cooperation with the nova-Institute. Notably, Asia is predicted to surpass 70% market share by 2026.

“The importance of a more than 200% growth rate within the next five years cannot be overstated,” said François de Bie, EUBP chairman, speaking at the European Bioplastics Conference in Berlin, Germany, last week.

However, European bioplastics producers have long argued for more favorable EU legislation to support market growth. Notably, the EU Single Use Plastics Directive (SUPD) fails to differentiate between biodegradable or compostable plastics and petrochemical plastics.

Controversially, Italy decided to exempt biodegradable and compostable plastics from its SUPD transposition, triggering environmental campaigners to report the Italian government to the European Commission.

Meanwhile, at the European Bioplastics Conference, EUBP expressed concerns the European Commission Joint Research Centre’s Life Cycle Assessment methodology, comparing the environmental impact of fossil-based to bio-based feedstocks for plastics production, lacks essential elements unfavorable to the bioplastics market.

By Joshua Poole