Caps and closures circularity: Tightening packaging legislation drives up monomaterial demand

The caps and closures industry is innovating around packaging material circularity as regulatory changes necessitating a shift in production methods are increasingly at the forefront of customers’ minds.

Earlier this year, the EU’s Single-use Plastics Directive (SUPD) came into force. The directive requires that all single-use plastics have no removable parts and be tethered to the bottles to aid material capture for recycling. 

“In anticipation of this, our closures in Europe meet these new requirements,” a spokesperson at Aptar Closures tells Packaging Insights. 

“In addition to the SUPD, customers are driving us to more monomaterial solutions to aid recycling and the inclusion of post-consumer recycled (PCR) resin. Advances to numerous Aptar closures will improve the likelihood and ease of package recycling both in quantity and quality.”

Caps and closure circularity is “one of the top priorities” at Aptar Closures, particularly in the development of new closures. 

“Aptar Closures is keenly focused on meeting the growing need for sustainable packaging solutions in the F&B, beauty, personal and home care industries. In 2023, we continued to see increasing demand in three strategic areas: Lighter Closures, Higher Recyclability and More Recycled Content,” says the spokesperson.

For personal care products, Berry offers lightweight Slimline tube closures.Recycling and e-commerce compatibility 
Besides its standard offer of tethered caps for the beverage market, Berry is strengthening its portfolio for edible oil and vinegar applications with launches such as its Sunny & Pical closure products, which focus on lightweighting and maximizing recyclability. 

This is done without compromising on functionality or consumer convenience, Jamie Riley, divisional sustainability manager at Berry Consumer Packaging International (CPI), tells Packaging Insights. 

“For sauces and condiments, we are offering our customers a choice of TPE valves, flow control and orifice configurations to meet their dispensing needs and improve the recyclability of their condiment packaging,” explains Riley.

“For personal care, we offer a comprehensive range of standard closures with CleanStream recycled content and lightweight Slimline tube closures, which are available in PP, rPP CleanStream and PE (to allow brands to have a full pack — tube and cap — in monomaterial).”

Furthermore, the Aptar spokesperson says its latest 2” Disc Top Lite launch is a “great portfolio addition” alongside the company’s Tube Top Lite. “Looking at our recent launches, there are two themes: increased recyclability and e-commerce compatibility, the latter of which we can certify at our own ISTA 6-accredited labs.”

“Other recent launches that hit these themes are our Future Disc Top and Embrace closures. The closures are perfectly suited for the personal care market. In the food market, we began offering a line of fully recyclable flow control dispensing closures using our SimpliCycle Thermoplastic Elastomer valve.”

Material circularity
Berry has committed to including recycled content in its caps and closures where safety regulation allows. 

“By focusing on recyclability from the concept and design stage, we maximize the opportunity for our products to become future recycled feedstock and avoid landfill or entering the environment,” Riley explains. 

“Brands and retailers are keen to use sustainability improvements in their products (including the packaging) as a commercial tool to gain market share and to demonstrate their commitment to their ESG commitments.”Aptar launched its  2” Disc Top Lite for the personal care market.

“Meanwhile, end-users (consumers) are increasingly factoring in sustainability claims when making buying choices so education and consistent science-based information is key to this,” says Riley. 

Supporting recyclate demands
Berry is watching upcoming legislation, such as the EU’s Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation (PPWR), closely to see what design changes are required to align with increasing circularity design aspects. 

“For example, where might the next area of focus for tethered caps be beyond single-use beverage bottles?,” wonders Riley.

“The success of our CleanStream facility that is able to turn collected UK household PP packaging back into high-quality packaging, is something we intend on using as a blueprint for further facilities to support the growing demand for recycled content,” he adds.

Meanwhile, Aptar has new tamper-evident solutions in the pipeline that are “intuitive” and non-detachable. 

“We are continuing to work on innovating our products to minimize the use of foil liners from sauce and condiment closures, as these liners are often not recyclable and end up as waste,” says the spokesperson.

“The move to the SimpliCycle valve is a great step toward circularity by improving the recyclability of full packaging of PET, HDPE and PP bottles.”

In other developments, recent studies have found that thousands of chemicals in closures, including BPA and PFAS, can be found in the human body.

According to Seifeldin Raslan Mohamed, head of the packaging and metal powder division at Aluminium Deutschland, there are concerns about coating producers’ ability to deliver the required quantities of BPA-free coatings, especially if there is a “spillover effect” in the beauty market.

“PFAS could not only affect the coatings, but we have heard reports that it might also affect the PE or PP components needed for some metal packaging formats, including closures.”