Trials of new yoghurt cups made from mechanically recycled polystyrene, conducted at Innotech, the research and development center for packaging solutions opened in 2019 by Spain-based Coexpan, a division of Grupo Lantero, and sister company Emsur, have now been completed with successful results.
The trials addressed formats used in both European and American markets using Styrolution PS ECO 440FC MR100 material, a 100% post-consumer recycled polystyrene grade produced from household food packaging waste. All dairy formats were produced and tested to food contacts standards.
These findings indicate that polystyrene is not only the best material for dairy applications, but that it also offers the shortest path to circularity for existing market applications.
“The results speak for themselves,” said Gonzalo Sanchez, head of recycling at Coexpan. Calling it a ‘massive achievement’, he said that many brand owners want the polystyrene journey to continue, and ‘we now have the proof that mechanically recycled polystyrene offers a solution for their food contact applications’.
“This will allow customers to concentrate on their core business rather than looking for alternative materials requiring changes to existing processes and investments into new equipment,” he noted.
“Polystyrene is all set now to enjoy the highest recycling rates of all polymers,” said Frank Eisenträger, Product Director Polystyrene EMEA at Ineos Styrolution. “I expect the quality of the mechanically recycled polystyrene to be so convincing that we will see applications that moved on to other materials switch back to polystyrene as new recycling capacities come online.”