Recycling giants, Italy's Amut Group and Austria's Erema, are holding an open house event to present a "bottle-to-packaging" process to visitors during 28-31 May at Amut's headquarters in Novara, Italy.
As part of the display, washed post-consumer PET bottle flakes will be recycled live at the facility to make food contact grade thermoforming sheet in a direct process.
The rPET sheet will be used at the Plast Milan exhibition – which is being held at the same time – to make thermoformed trays for the food sector, the companies have announced.
This, said the two recycling line suppliers, “show that the desired closed material loop in the PET sector is already reality.”
The post-consumer flakes are processed in a new demonstration facility – a direct combination of Vacurema technology and the Amut Inline Sheet plant – in a single process to make food contact grade thermoforming sheet.
"Energy savings, IV preservation, lower logistics and process costs lead to higher profitability and are unbeatable arguments which are driving the trend towards direct food grade PET processing," commented Amut president Piergianni Milani.
The direct combination of recycling and production technology cuts out a process stage, as the melt goes directly from the Vacurema to the Amut plant without the detour of pelletising.
"The Open House visitors will hold food contact grade thermoforming sheet produced from 100% consumer PET bottle flakes in their hands – without even the slightest amount of virgin material added," also commented Michael Buchberger, sales manager for the bottle sector at Erema.
A free shuttle service between the trade fair in Milan and the AMUT headquarters in Novara will be available for attendees.