Tag Archive for: packaging

PVC plastic successes in South Africa

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Polyvinyl chloride (PVC) is the fifth most-widely recycled polymer in South Africa. This plastic is strong, durable and can come in three forms – rigid, flexible and liquid. PVC is considered to be one of the most versatile thermoplastics and it is recyclable in South Africa. It can be recycled into numerous products, making it a valuable polymer for the economy.

South Africa has some of the highest recycling rates in the world – just under 21 000 tonnes of PVC plastic was recycled in 2018 alone. Of this volume, most of the PVC plastic came from gumboots, cables, hosepipes, plumbing pipes, conduit and gutters. These materials are mainly recycled into shoe soles, car mats and plastic speed humps.

PVC plastic recycling is a successful industry

PVC recyclate is currently in high demand due to its various applications and low energy requirements. This plastic is inherently flame-resistant and is impermeable to liquids. PVC is cost-effective to manufacture and, because of its versatility, it is an abundant plastic polymer. It is widely used in the construction, irrigation, medical, mining and motoring industry as a result of these properties.

PVC can also be recycled into various rigid, flexible and liquid products, including rubber shoes, flooring, trays, mats, insulation, raincoats and many more. The clothing and footwear industry purchases the majority portion of PVC recyclate, followed by the construction and agriculture sectors. This polymer has many uses as a recycled material in various industries in South Africa.

PVC has a number of beneficial properties

PVC is a popular plastic material because of its advantageous properties. During the manufacturing process, chlorine is obtained from ordinary salt and is chemically combined with ethylene, which is derived from coal in South Africa. PVC is always compounded with additives to give it a range of properties, such as rigidity, flexibility, fire resistance and liquidity. 

PVC has excellent resistance to wear and tear, making it ideal for products that need to withstand hard usage over many years. It is lightweight, cost-effective and requires little energy to manufacture. PVC is highly valuable in this regard as it supports economic development and the environment, unlike many plastic alternatives. These properties make PVC a popular plastic polymer. It is widely recycled in South Africa thanks to our strong and resilient recycling industry. For more information on South Africa’s vinyls industry, visit SAVinyls.co.za

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Plastics SA represents all sectors of the South African plastics industry. ​Together with our associations, we play an active role in the growth and development of the industry and strive to address plastics related issues, influence role-players and make plastics the material of choice.

​Plastics SA has been mandated to ensure a vibrant and sustainable plastics industry in South Africa. The plastics sector is uniquely placed to meet the needs of a sustainable society and to deliver solutions to many challenges such as recycling, climate change, water scarcity, resource usage and energy recovery.

For more news, updates and information on the South African plastics industry, follow us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, YouTube, LinkedIn and Pinterest.

How PE-HD packaging is recycled in South Africa

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High-density polyethylene (PE-HD) is a commonly used packaging polymer in South Africa. It is widely used to manufacture milk bottles, plastic crates, drums, irrigation equipment and cosmetic bottles. PE-HD is easy to recycle and has many beneficial uses – making it the third-most-popular packaging material in the country.

Most of the plastics used for packaging applications are mechanically recycled in South Africa. These materials are often picked, sorted and washed by hand before being processed. PE-HD follows a similar process when it is sent to a recycling facility to be turned into recycled plastic granules.

How PE-HD is recycled

Firstly, discarded PE-HD packaging is collected by waste management companies and informal waste pickers working at landfills. They source and collect the plastic before bailing them into bundles for transport. These bundles of PE-HD waste are then taken to recycling facilities where the process begins. 

The PE-HD bundles are undone and the plastic is separated by grade. Due to the many applications and products made using PE-HD, the waste will have various qualities. The plastic waste is cleaned thoroughly to remove any dirt, debris and contaminants. This makes the PE-HD refuse safe for processing and ensures that the recyclate batch is pure. Any contaminants or dirt could spoil the entire batch and ruin the quality of the end product.

The PE-HD waste is then fed onto a conveyor belt where it is sent to various stations in the recycling facility. The first stop is the granulator that shreds the plastic into smaller particles. These particles are sent to a high-temperature oven that melts them into a sort of resin. This PE-HD resin is extruded and cooled before being chopped into small pellets.

These pellets of PE-HD plastic are sold to manufacturers, who can then use them to create new products. PE-HD is commonly used for blow mould processes, so the pellets are melted into a sheet of soft plastic before being injected into a mould and shaped under pressure. Recycled PE-HD is used to manufacture numerous durable products, such as plastic toys, benches and crates.

PE-HD packaging can be reused in the home

This polymer is highly durable and can withstand a lot of wear and tear. Consumers should always aim to reuse their PE-HD containers and products before discarding them. Milk bottles can be washed and reused to store water and other liquids. Grocery bags made from PE-HD can be used again and again when visiting the supermarkets. 

Household containers and shampoo bottles can be used to store various products in the home. The strength of this polymer lends itself to a lifetime of reuse, making PE-HD a valuable plastic, especially when it comes to packaging. By reusing these products, consumers can save a lot of money in the long run. If discarding PE-HD is necessary, at least it can be recycled easily and the end products are just as strong and durable.

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Plastics SA represents all sectors of the South African plastics industry. ​Together with our associations, we play an active role in the growth and development of the industry and strive to address plastics related issues, influence role-players and make plastics the material of choice.

​Plastics SA has been mandated to ensure a vibrant and sustainable plastics industry in South Africa. The plastics sector is uniquely placed to meet the needs of a sustainable society and to deliver solutions to many challenges such as recycling, climate change, water scarcity, resource usage and energy recovery.

For more news, updates and information on the South African plastics industry, follow us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, YouTube, LinkedIn and Pinterest.

PE-HD plastic packaging successes

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High-density polyethylene (PE-HD) is the third most-widely recycled polymer in South Africa. This plastic is strong, scratch-resistant and non-toxic, making it ideal for use in the beverage and packaging industry. PE-HD is an abundant material and is quite easy to recycle in South Africa. It can be turned into numerous recycled products, making it a valuable polymer that can be reused again and again.

South Africa has some of the highest recycling rates in the world – 63 038 tonnes of PE-HD plastic was recycled in 2018 alone. Of this volume, most of the PE-HD plastic came in the form of milk bottles, plastic crates and plastic drums. These materials are mainly recycled into carrier bags for grocery stores and supermarket chains.

PE-HD plastic recycling is a successful industry

PE-HD recyclate is currently in high demand due to its durability. Although recycled PE-HD is not suitable for food contact applications (like the virgin polymer is), there is a great need for the recyclate in the agricultural industry. The main bulk of PE-HD recyclate is used to manufacture irrigation pipes, feeding troughs, fence poles and weather covers for the farming sector.

PE-HD can also be recycled into various flexible packaging products, including bin liners, recycled grocery bags and wood bags. The mining industry also accounts for a large portion of PE-HD recyclate, followed by the rigid packaging and construction sectors. This polymer has a variety of uses as a recycled material in various industries in South Africa.

PE-HD has a number of beneficial properties

PE-HD is an ideal packaging material because of its unique properties. It is produced from the polymerisation of ethylene at high temperatures, making it dense and robust. It is a highly crystalline polymer with strong bonds between molecules. These properties make PE-HD a dense plastic with high strength, high temperature resistance and excellent chemical resistance.

PE-HD has excellent corrosion and scratch resistance, making it ideal for products that need to withstand wear and tear or contain harsh chemicals. It is a lightweight and non-toxic plastic that lends itself to many applications in the packaging industry and a number of other sectors. These properties make PE-HD a popular plastic polymer. It is widely recycled in South Africa thanks to our strong and resilient recycling industry.

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Plastics SA represents all sectors of the South African plastics industry. ​Together with our associations, we play an active role in the growth and development of the industry and strive to address plastics related issues, influence role-players and make plastics the material of choice.

​Plastics SA has been mandated to ensure a vibrant and sustainable plastics industry in South Africa. The plastics sector is uniquely placed to meet the needs of a sustainable society and to deliver solutions to many challenges such as recycling, climate change, water scarcity, resource usage and energy recovery.

For more news, updates and information on the South African plastics industry, follow us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, YouTube, LinkedIn and Pinterest.

How PET packaging is recycled in South Africa

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Polyethylene terephthalate (PET) is a common packaging polymer around the world. In South Africa, it is widely used to manufacture beverage bottles, vegetable punnets, yoghurt cups and even clothing. PET is easy to recycle and has many beneficial uses – making it the second-most popular packaging material in the country.

Most of the plastics used for various packaging applications are mechanically recycled in South Africa. These materials are often picked, sorted and washed by hand before being processed. However, PET is different. Owing to the volume of PET recyclable waste in South Africa, many recycling facilities use technology to sort and process this polymer.

PET is recycled using automated technology

Discarded PET packaging is collected by waste management companies and informal waste pickers working at landfills. They source and collect the PET plastic before bailing them into dense packs for transport. These bundles of plastic waste are then taken to recycling facilities where the process begins. The bails are fed onto a production line that first passes under strong magnets to remove any metal contaminants.

Next, the PET plastic is fed to a hot washer that removes sand, dirt and oils. The labels on beverage bottles are also removed in this washer. These labels are collected and sent to another recycling production line. The cleaned PET packaging is then fed along a conveyor and scanned using high-speed optical sensors and infrared cameras to sort the waste. 

These sensors detect the type and colour of the PET waste, sorting it into batches of clear, green, brown and mixed colours. It is necessary to sort the plastic by colour as this results in a recyclate with consistent colours at the end of the process. If brown bottles were mixed with green ones, the batch would come out a dirty olive colour. 

Once sorted by colour, these bails of recyclate are sent to a granulator to be turned into small flakes. These flakes are then washed in three stages to remove any residual contaminants and sticky label fragments. The flakes are sent to a heater, which dries them, before being fed to a high-temperature oven to melt. This melted PET resin is extruded (stretched into long strands), cooled and chopped into small pellets. 

These pellets of plastic are sold to manufacturers, who can then use the recycled PET (rPET) to create new beverage bottles. These rPET fibres are also used to manufacture a variety of products, such as polyester clothing, carpeting, underbody shields for vehicles and recycled PET packaging products.

Other methods of recycling PET packaging

The Coca-Cola Company is trying to find more sustainable ways of recycling its PET bottles. It has started to chemically recycle its plastic bottles. This process breaks the polymer down into its basic molecules, separating the colourants, contaminants and impurities at the same time. The result is a number of near-pure products that can be processed back into PET packaging or used for other applications.

While this chemical recycling process is only being trialled in Europe, it could make its way to South Africa in the near future. Right now, South Africa has some of the highest recycling rates in the world – beating Europe by over 15%. PET is one of the easiest plastics to recycle and it can be processed again and again. This has numerous economic and environmental benefits if the plastic waste is disposed of responsibly.

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Plastics SA represents all sectors of the South African plastics industry. ​Together with our associations, we play an active role in the growth and development of the industry and strive to address plastics related issues, influence role-players and make plastics the material of choice.

​Plastics SA has been mandated to ensure a vibrant and sustainable plastics industry in South Africa. The plastics sector is uniquely placed to meet the needs of a sustainable society and to deliver solutions to many challenges such as recycling, climate change, water scarcity, resource usage and energy recovery.

For more news, updates and information on the South African plastics industry, follow us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, YouTube, LinkedIn and Pinterest.

PET plastic packaging successes

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One of the most common plastic packaging polymers is polyethylene terephthalate (PET). This plastic is highly durable and naturally colourless – making it ideal for protective food, beverage and product packaging. It is also easy to recycle and can be turned into numerous recycled products, adding to its popularity across the globe.

South Africa has some of the highest recycling rates in the world – 74 328 tonnes of PET plastic was recycled in 2018, making it the second most recycled polymer in the country. PET is so easily recycled in South Africa that we imported 5136 tonnes from foreign countries last year to boost the local recycling industry.

PET recycling is a successful industry

PET packaging is recycled into plastic fibres that are then sold to suppliers who manufacture various products. This recycled PET (rPET) is used to make plastic vehicle components, clothing, textiles and more packaging materials. Clothing and footwear account for one of the largest market segments for rPET; just under 15% of all rPET is used to manufacture polyester fibres for clothing and shoes.

The South African plastics industry has invested heavily in rPET. Post-consumer PET packaging and beverage bottles are also recycled into new plastic bottles, plastic sheeting and thermoformed punnets for food. rPET is the only recycled material that can be used in food-contact applications because it is 100% non-toxic and will not contaminate food and drinks with chemicals.

PET has a number of beneficial properties

PET is an ideal packaging material because of its unique properties. It is virtually shatterproof, which means that it forms a durable protective coating around food and products. It is also non-reactive and non-toxic, so food and products will not be contaminated by the packaging. 

PET is also very cost-effective to produce and recycle. These properties of the polymer make PET an unbeatable material for consumer product packaging and polyester clothing fibres. It is widely recycled across the globe, but even more so in South Africa thanks to our strong and resilient recycling industry.

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Plastics SA represents all sectors of the South African plastics industry. ​Together with our associations, we play an active role in the growth and development of the industry and strive to address plastics related issues, influence role-players and make plastics the material of choice.

​Plastics SA has been mandated to ensure a vibrant and sustainable plastics industry in South Africa. The plastics sector is uniquely placed to meet the needs of a sustainable society and to deliver solutions to many challenges such as recycling, climate change, water scarcity, resource usage and energy recovery.

For more news, updates and information on the South African plastics industry, follow us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, YouTube, LinkedIn and Pinterest.

Plastic packaging alternatives may be worse for the marine environment

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A committee of United Kingdom members of parliament (MPs) has warned that plastic packaging alternatives could be doing more harm to the marine environment than plastics. Compostable and biodegradable plastics could be adding to global marine pollution because they do not always break down as intended.

The use of these plastic alternatives is growing rapidly around the world, but there is a worldwide shortage of infrastructure to correctly process these waste items. Experts also argue that the lack of consumer understanding about compostable and biodegradable plastics actually increases the likelihood of littering and illegal dumping.

Most compostable packaging waste needs to be sent to an industrial composting facility in order to properly decompose. Being left out in the environment will not work. The same goes for biodegradable plastics – they need to be sent to a certified facility in order to break down as intended. The MPs state that there are not enough of these facilities around the world.

Environmental NGOs weigh-in

These concerns held by British lawmakers are also shared by environmental non-government organisations (NGOs) in many regions across the globe. They agree that the rapid introduction of so-called biodegradable plastic alternatives may have actually increased marine pollution. “If a biodegradable cup gets into the sea, it could pose just as much of a problem to marine life as a conventional plastic cup,” says Environmental Investigation Agency ocean campaigner Juliet Phillips.

Environmental think tank, Green Alliance, also says that there is evidence to prove that the term ‘biodegradable’ makes consumers think that it’s alright to discard these materials into the environment. This inadvertently encourages pollution on land and at sea. These materials also do not decompose the same way in the environment as they did under controlled circumstances in a laboratory during development.

Governments concerned about plastic alternatives

“In the backlash against plastic, other materials are being increasingly used as substitutes in food and drink packaging. We are concerned that such actions are being taken without proper consideration of wider environmental consequences, such as higher carbon emissions. Compostable plastics have been introduced without the right infrastructure or consumer understanding to manage compostable waste,” says United Kingdom chair of the Commons select committee Neil Parish.

“The drive to introduce bioplastics, biodegradable plastics and compostable plastics is being done with limited emphasis on explaining the purpose of these materials to the public or consideration of whether they are in fact better from an environmental perspective than the plastic packaging they replace,” explains UK-based independent environmental charity, Keep Britain Tidy.

South Africa in the same boat

Although these opinions are being voiced by UK-based experts, they hold true for biodegradable and plastic alternatives around the world. South Africa is also seeing a rapid increase in the use of compostable and biodegradable plastics. Many supermarkets, coffee shops and restaurants are already providing South Africans with biodegradable and compostable alternatives.

These materials are also not always suitable for recycling. South Africa has a thriving recycling industry and many of the plastic materials produced in the country end up being recycled into new products over and over again. In a country like ours, it sometimes makes more sense to recycle traditional plastic packaging and products than to push for so-called biodegradable and compost alternatives.

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Plastics SA represents all sectors of the South African plastics industry. ​Together with our associations, we play an active role in the growth and development of the industry and strive to address plastics related issues, influence role-players and make plastics the material of choice.

​Plastics SA has been mandated to ensure a vibrant and sustainable plastics industry in South Africa. The plastics sector is uniquely placed to meet the needs of a sustainable society and to deliver solutions to many challenges such as recycling, climate change, water scarcity, resource usage and energy recovery.

For more news, updates and information on the South African plastics industry, follow us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, YouTube, LinkedIn and Pinterest.

The benefits of plastic packaging

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Plastics are highly valuable materials that make modern life possible. They are such a big part of our daily lives that we don’t even know we are using plastic products sometimes, such as the kettle, toothbrush and television remote. They are used everywhere – our cars, supermarkets, banks and even hospitals.

The issue is not plastics, rather the irresponsible way in which they are disposed of – particularly plastic packaging. These materials are typically single-use and they have an important role to play in the economy. Plastic packaging protects our food, drinks and goods from being damaged and rotting. They can protect our health and even save our lives.

Plastic packaging is designed to be durable and tough, so consumers need to throw it away in a recycling bin rather than dumping it on the way home from the shops. Plastic packaging can have many benefits – we just need to dispose of it correctly and ensure that it is properly recycled. Here are a few of the major benefits.

Plastic packaging helps to prevent food waste

Most of the food that we buy from supermarkets comes wrapped in plastic – whether it is our cereal, bread, sugar, vegetables or meat. These protective coatings help to prolong the freshness of our foods by keeping them dry or preventing bacteria from contaminating the produce. Without plastic packaging, our food would spoil within hours.

These materials prevent food waste by keeping the products fresh for longer. Food waste is already a problem in South Africa – we throw away almost one-third of all food before it is even sold! This equates to around 10-million tonnes of food every year. We can’t afford to waste more food by removing the plastic packaging and allowing it to rot before it can be consumed.

Plastics prevent damaged goods

Just as packaging protects food items, it does so for household goods and gadgets. Most of the products we buy are protected by plastic packaging, from books and pens to toothbrushes and sports equipment. These outer coatings act as a shield against scratches and dents that can damage products during transport.

Damaged goods either don’t sell or they have to be discounted, which causes problems for shop owners and suppliers. The plastic packaging acts as a cost-effective way to ensure that a product is delivered in perfect condition. Consumers have become fussy with these issues, demanding lower prices for usable goods with scratches and cosmetic damage. 

Plastics packaging helps to retain value in the economy

The end result of plastic packaging is that it helps to retain value in the economy. Food items and goods that are protected by this packaging are sold at full price, which means that shop owners, suppliers and manufacturers benefit at the end of the day. They earn the value of their goods and are able to provide an income for their staff members. Preventing damage to goods during transport will also help to keep costs low – to the ultimate benefit of the buyer. 

Plastic packaging allows the economy to function properly, securing jobs and minimising losses through damage or contamination. Plastics are highly versatile and useful materials – they just need to be reused and recycled as much as possible. Everyone has a role to play in preventing plastic pollution, not just waste management providers. We have a responsibility to the environment, but also to the economy and society.

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Plastics SA represents all sectors of the South African plastics industry. ​Together with our associations, we play an active role in the growth and development of the industry and strive to address plastics related issues, influence role-players and make plastics the material of choice.

​Plastics SA has been mandated to ensure a vibrant and sustainable plastics industry in South Africa. The plastics sector is uniquely placed to meet the needs of a sustainable society and to deliver solutions to many challenges such as recycling, climate change, water scarcity, resource usage and energy recovery.

For more news, updates and information on the South African plastics industry, follow us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, YouTube, LinkedIn and Pinterest.