Sun Chemical joins AIM’s Digital Watermarks Initiative HolyGrail 2.0

Sun Chemical has signed up to the Digital Watermarks Initiative HolyGrail 2.0, facilitated by AIM, the European Brands Association. In doing so, Sun Chemical is joining forces with over 85 companies and organisations to participate in a pilot project with the goal of proving the viability of digital watermarking technologies to enable better sorting and higher quality recycling rates for packaging in the EU, in order to drive a truly circular economy.

The initiative follows on from HolyGrail 1.0, a project conducted as part of the Ellen MacArthur Foundation’s New Plastics Economy programme, which brought together different stakeholders from the packaging value chain between 2016 and 2019. Having investigated different innovations to improve post-consumer recycling, digital watermarks were found to be the most promising technology.

Digital Watermarks are imperceptible codes that typically cover the surface of a consumer goods packaging and display the properties of packaging. They can carry a wide range of attributes, such as manufacturer, SKU, type of plastics used and composition for multilayer objects, food vs. non-food usage, etc. The idea is that, once the packaging has entered into a waste sorting facility, the digital watermark can be detected and decoded by a camera on a sorting line. Based on the attributes identified, the packaging can then be easily sorted into appropriate streams. This would result in better and more accurate sorting streams and therefore in higher quality recyclates, benefiting the overall packaging value chain. Sun Chemical, along with the other brands in the initiative, will fully investigate the effectiveness of such measures.

Nicolas Betin, Director of Product Strategy EMEA & Global Sustainability Business Leader, Packaging Inks & Materials, Sun Chemical comments: “Sun Chemical is proud to support this sustainability initiative, working with leading brands right across the packaging value chain. Digital watermarks for smart packaging offer an innovative measure for changing the way packaging waste is sorted, so we are excited to explore the full potential of such solutions. We are delighted to be a part of such a ground-breaking project that could make a significant difference towards achieving better recycling and, ultimately, a more circular economy, in line with Sun Chemical’s own sustainability goals.”
https://www.sunchemical.com/sun-chemical-joins-aims-digital-watermarks-initiative-holygrail-2-0/

Related Posts

Amcor among major organizations worldwide committing to diminish plastic waste, pollution

Amcor Chief Executive Officer Ron Delia signed the New Plastics Economy Global Commitment on behalf of the company’s 33,000 people. The commitment, which is sponsored by the Ellen MacArthur Foundation (EMF) in collaboration with the United Nations Environment Programme, was announced today at the Our Ocean Conference in Bali, Indonesia. Amcor is a core partner of the EMF’s New Plastics Economy initiative. “Plastic packaging is vital for products used by billions of consumers around the globe,” said Amcor’s Mr. Delia. “It’s highly effective and easy to adapt, so that those products are safe, nutritious and effective. “We’re constantly innovating to make plastic packaging even better, including in protecting the environment.” For example, last month Amcor announced a breakthrough, flexible-plastic film that provides high-barrier protection, can be used in sterilized packaging and is recyclable. Click read more below for additional detail.

Two Sides Member Spotlight: Rolland Enterprises inc.

This month’s Member Spotlight features Rolland Enterprises Inc. A leading North American producer of uncoated papers, Rolland manufactures papers with up to 100% post-consumer content. With operations in Quebec and Wisconsin, the company’s operations include a paper mill and converting facility, as well as two state-of-the-art facilities that produce premium recycled pulp. Founded in 1882, Rolland’s enduring commitment to quality, innovation and sustainable manufacturing include sustainable sourcing, energy efficiency, water conservation, wastewater treatment technology, recycling of process byproducts and a continuing focus on further reducing its environmental footprint. Rolland uses the life cycle assessment (LCA) process to guide its sustainability improvement objectives and makes the results of its LCAs public, confirming the company’s environmental stewardship to its many stakeholders. For example, an LCA identified a gap in the company’s water consumption which enabled it to improve its water recycling systems. Today, Rolland’s paper mill has a closed-loop system that uses six times less water and recycles the water 30 times. One of the company’s most successful environmental innovations is the use of 93% renewable biogas energy to manufacture products at its paper mill — the only mill in North America to use primarily biogas for energy. An eight-mile-long pipeline feeds the mill with purified methane gas captured at a nearby landfill. This reduces Rolland’s annual CO2 footprint by 70,000 tons or the equivalent of taking 23,400 compact cars off the road for one year.

Ahlstrom-Munksjö and Metsä Fibre collaborating on responsible sourcing

Ahlstrom-Munksjö and Metsä Fibre continue the collaboration by focusing on responsible wood sourcing. As part of a resource-intensive industry Ahlstrom-Munksjö, as a significant wood pulp consumer, and Metsä Fibre, as the world’s leading producer of bleached softwood pulp, have a particular responsibility to advance environmental performance and sustainability throughout their operations and supply chains. “We are committed to contributing to United Nations Sustainable Development Goals by reducing negative impact across the value chain. The collaboration with both the suppliers and customers is very important in developing and implementing our sustainability strategy, and thereby achieving these goals,” says Heli Nykänen, Manager, Group Sustainability and Capital Investments. The project that started in 2019 has mainly focused on responsible wood sourcing in the value chain from the forest to the end-products.
Back To Top
×Close search
Search