Issue link: https://read.dmtmag.com/i/961821
STiR coffee and tea 57 Advanced Filling Technologies S P R E A F I C O - S R L . C O M Spreafico è un marchio leader nella progettazione e commercializzazione di macchine automatiche per il riempimento e confezionamento di caffè e solubili in capsula. Ogni macchina Spreafico è costruita e collaudata con la massima cura e precisione. Spreafico is a leading brand in the capsule filling of coffee and other soluble products. Each Spreafico machine is designed, crafted and tested with maximum precision and attention to details. AMAZING TECHNOLOGY ARCHITECTURE If Elon Musk, who founded SpaceX in 2002, can launch "Rocketman" to the stars behind the wheel of a cherry red Tesla in less than 20 years, why has it taken so long to figure out how to easily recycle capsules? Below are constraints identified by PAC NEXT, an industry fi- nanced consortium to assist packaging stakeholders in resolving end- of-life challenges for material recycling facilities (MRFs). What happens to this material today? • Capsules are generally not accepted at curbside due to the multiple components of pod, filter, seal/lid, and grounds. Nonetheless, con- sumers put these materials into their recycling box. • Due to their small size, capsules tend to drop through mechanical screens. Because they still contain grounds the capsules then con- taminate other waste streams, particularly glass. • In many locations pods are manually sorted from the line or left to go in with the mixed plastics as the negative sort. What can being done about it? • There is an end market for polypropylene and polyethylene. The key is to be able to separate all the components of the package including the pod, filter, seal/lid, and grounds. • Consumer education is needed where packaging is not compatible with MRF capabilities. • Brands should promote return-to-retail where appropriate and take advantage of solutions like Terracycle mail-in recycling. • This is a highly evolving market likely to be disrupted by the intro- ducion of new sustainable packaging solutions. Learn more: www.pac.ca Why It's Taking So Long The 2020 promise Coffee brewing systems rivals Nestlé and JAB Holdings (which purchased Keurig for $13.9 billion in 2016 and last year append- ed Dr Pepper Snapple which earns $26 billion annually) both produce capsules made of recyclable materials — but neither is easily recycled. Nespresso uses an aluminum shell that requires removal of the coffee within. Parent Nestle subsidizes pickup with a recy- cling partner. Keurig first introduced recyclable plastic in 2016. Keurig Dr Pepper repeated in 2017 a promise to change the composition to enable 100% of its capsules to be recycled by the end of 2020. About two-thirds of the latest design can be recycled when consumers remove the foil lid, filter, and grinds. From a niche market, single-serve beverage capsules have grown to be one of the most important sub-applications of the ambient thin wall packaging segment in the past five years. Applied Market Information (AMI) a British consulting firm said "there is an urgent need to review the materials used for cap- sules conversion in search of more sustainable options, as well as to explore end-of-life solutions." Material changes are likely to disrupt the supply chain even further, according to AMI which is organiz- ing a Single-Cup Capsules conference in Vienna in September. "Increased demand for recyclable, bio-based, and other sus- tainable packaging types, driven largely by environmentally con- scious consumers will reach $440.3 billion by 2025, according to Research and Markets. A 2016 study by Lux Research identified bio-based materials and chemicals that perform as well as – and in some instances bet- ter than – petro-based incumbents. The focus is current on bio-