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U.S., U.K. progress in biodegradables

Biodegradable packaging is back in the news as Sainsbury’s in England unveils produce packs. Wal-Mart, meanwhile, launches bowls and plates in the United States.

The large U.K. supermarket chain Sainsbury's has been using these compostable, biodegradable trays for organic produce for the p
The large U.K. supermarket chain Sainsbury's has been using these compostable, biodegradable trays for organic produce for the p

A March 14 editors’ briefing at Eastman Chemical (Kingsport, TN) revealed that Eastman’s Eastar Bio® biodegradable copolymer is part of two intriguing food packages, one here and one in Europe.

The European application involves food trays used by J. Sainsbury’s Co. in England for organic vegetables. Apack (Markt Erlbach, Germany) makes the tray.

Sainsbury’s, of course, is a retailer, so it’s really Sainsbury’s produce suppliers that pack produce into the trays. Still, it was Sainsbury’s that drove the innovation.

“We have lead suppliers with whom we work very closely on new technology trials,” says Terry Robins, technical manager of packaging at the London-based chain. “In this case, we worked with one of these lead suppliers to make sure the biodegradable trays would work in our system. Then we made it known to all our organic produce suppliers that we’d prefer this tray.”

In England, retail chains often dictate packaging specifications to their suppliers to a far greater degree than in the United States. So when a retailer articulates a preference, it’s as good as saying “Here’s what you will use.”

The Apack trays consist of starch—derived from renewable resources such as potatoes, corn, or rice—mixed with limestone and fibers in a slurry. This mix of materials is formed into molds and dried. Sheets of formed trays are discharged immediately into a vacuum laminating system that uses an organic adhesive to bond a layer of 2.5-mil Eastar Bio copolymer to the food-contact side of the formed trays. Extrusion blown by Fardis (Beerse, Belgium), this material gives the tray the moisture resistance it otherwise lacks. Yet Apack guarantees that 99.7% of the tray will biodegrade in a compost pile, commercial or domestic, within six weeks.

Development work

“Quality and innovation have been the bywords at Sainsbury’s since 1869,” says Robins. “We

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