Trends including material reduction, production line efficiency and enhanced recyclability will continue to inform plastic packaging for food and drink developments in 2009 more so than a switch to biodegradable polymers, according to a UK research group.
Plastics analyst with Applied Market Information (AMI), Carole Kluth, told FoodProductionDaily.com that a wider take up of bioplastics is being hindered by performance and supply issues, with a reversal of this trend in the coming year unlikely in such a volatile trading environment.
She said that environmental concerns of packaging suppliers, in the current economic slump, will be played out in terms of innovations that enable lightweighting and mono material packaging rather than an increase in the use of renewable materials.
In terms of the closures segment, Kluth predicts that cost cutting measures will also influence developments, and she expects beverage manufacturers to shift from two piece polypropylene (PP) lids to one piece high density polyethylene (HDPE) closures in the months ahead.
Source: FoodProductionDaily.com
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