Food processing company Tetra Pak® will sign an agreement with Braskem, a thermoplastic resins producer, for the supply of low-density polyethylene (LDPE) made from sugar cane.
Tetra Pak will use bio-based LDPE as a component of its packages produced in Brazil, meaning 100% of Tetra Pak packages produced in Brazil, about 13 billion, will have up to 82% packaging material from renewable sources.
Consumer demand for greener packaging continues to grow, with studies showing sustainable packaging is expected to reach 32% of all global packaging by 2014, compared to 21% in 2009. Tetra Pak's new initiative will begin during the first quarter of 2014.
Braskem will use ethanol derived from sugar cane to produce ethylene, which will then be converted into LDPE. The LDPE made from renewable sugar cane has the same technical properties as LDPE made from fossil sources, plus the environmental benefits of coming from a renewable source. Braskem biopolymers are known under the trademark I´m greenTM.
“The new bio-based I´m green TM LDPE is as inert, resistant and recyclable as the polyethylene made from fossil sources, but contributes to the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions by absorbing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere during the sugar cane growth process," said Braskem President Carlos Fadigas.
Since 2008, the Brazilian paperboard chain of custody has been certified by the Forest Stewardship Council™ (FSC™), which means all the paper used in the production of Tetra Pak packages comes from forests managed in accordance with responsible forestry management principles.
Tetra Pak was the first liquid food packaging supplier to use bio-based plastic in its packaging, launching Tetra Brik® Aseptic packages with StreamCap™ 1000. Earlier this month, the company announced global availability of a bio-based version of LightCap™ 30, which uses HDPE made from sugar cane.
