Brasco becomes the 40th participant in the Nextloopp initiative

The Nextloopp initiative, launched in October 2020, utilizes marking technology to separate food-grade PP from post-consumer packaging to create recyclable food contact approved, 100% recyclable PP packaging
.

Blasco recently joined the initiative as its 40th member
.
Nextloopp is led by Nextek, a UK-based sustainability consultancy founded by Professor Edward Kosior in 2004
.
Nextek started the Nextloopp project to close the loop of food grade rPP
.

Europe consumes about 10 million tons of PP annually, 40% of which is used in consumer packaging
.
About 70% of these consumer packages are food packaging
.
In the UK alone, 210,000 tonnes of food-grade PP packaging is used annually for pots, pans, trays and films, while in the US, an estimated 827,000 tonnes of PP are produced annually by single-family households
.
Since no sorting and processing technology for food-grade rPP materials has been developed through mechanical recycling so far, most of these food packages are currently recycled into non-food applications
.

Just producing 1 ton of recycled PP can reduce carbon dioxide emissions by about 1.
7 tons
.
If the UK were to meet the 30% recycling target on food contact PP packaging alone, it would save 63,000 tonnes of virgin PP and 107,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions annually
.

Using a combination of technologies, Nextloopp first separates food-grade PP from other materials, then decontaminates the polymer to ensure compliance with UK, EU and US food-grade standards
.

The project recently announced outstanding results from its innovative tracer-based classification trial
.
The ability to identify and sort any number of packaging variants of any plastic type, from bleach bottles to milk bottles, is a world first and puts Nextloopp on the fast track to creating true post-consumer food-grade recycled PP
.

Currently, the goals of the project are as follows: to demonstrate innovative sorting technologies, to prepare protocols for the European Food Safety Authority and the US Food and Drug Administration, to implement sorting requirements for packaging in recycling streams, and machinery to use food-grade rPP as a raw material for packaging reprocessing facility
.
The demonstration plant will be operational by the end of 2022
.

Alberto Chiozzi, who was recently appointed head of the further development of mechanical recycling in Europe at Brasco, said: “We are proud to be part of Nextloopp, given the urgent need to increase the recovery rate and quality of mechanically recycled PP
.
”

"I am confident that working with other members, we will achieve our goal of closing the loop on food packaging
.
"