Most of us spend a good chunk of our time taking care of ourselves and watching out for the fine details. We look at the nutritional quality of our food—measuring sodium to potassium levels. Taking stock of caloric intake per portion size. Maybe we should spare a thought for whether or not we’re going to purchase a product by what it’s wrapped in. Paper or plastic? Is the plastic bioplastic? Do we even know the difference?
Good Natured Products (GDNP.C) introduced their food-safe Bio-PET environmentally friendly packaging material today, according to a press release.
First, PET stands for polyethylene terephthalate. It’s the most common thermoplastic polymer resin of the polyester family. You know those companies that boast that they’ve turned all of your returned plastic bottlecaps and coffee-lids into a hoodie? That’s PET, and it’s not even remotely environmentally friendly. Manufacturing PET resin generates more toxic emissions (nickel, ethylbenzene, ethylene oxide, benzene) than manufacturing glass.
Bio-PET doesn’t.
Compared to most packaging materials, which are petroleum-based plastic and not at all friendly to environment, the Bio-PET material consists of contains 20 to 30% plant-based content, and up to 50% recycled content, and is ready to go in recycling bins across both Canada and the United States.
“By securing the North American supply of Bio-PET for thermoformed packaging, we continue to make it easy and affordable by providing the market with the widest possible choice of Earth-friendly materials to begin their transition to sustainable plant-based packaging,” said Paul Antoniadis, chief executive officer of Good Natured.
Good Natured’s niche is the production and sale of the broadest assortment of ecofriendly products, using plant-based options instead of petroleum. The company’s goal is to facilitate the switch away from environmentally damaging products to those constructed from renewable materials. The general notion under investigation is that business owners and consumers would and should switch to environmentally friendly options if they were the same quality or better than those of made from petroleum.
Bio-PET produces another option for product manufacturers and food producers using sustainable packaging, which had been previously limited to petroleum-based products, curbside recyclable and plant-based compost options.
The company expanded its plant-based materials options to include fibre, bioplastics and biodegradables last spring. Bio-PET fits into the bioplastics component. Good Natured bioplastics are not unlike petroleum-based polymers, like PET and HDPE (or high-density polyethylene) that you commonly see in plastic packaging. Bio-PET works like regular PET and can be mixed with PET in recycling streams. Except this new material will help businesses ween themselves off fossil fuels without any substantial change to their recycling programs.
The Bio-PET market
The United State sis one of the largest consumers of bio-PET, so there’s definitely some value to the argument. Its used for manufacturing bottles, as well as technology and other consumer goods. There’s also a considerable rise in demand for eco-friendly packaging in the food and beverage, consumer products and pharmaceutical industries due to issues surrounding global warming.
Key drivers for growth in the North American markets are technical innovations like Good Natured’s, and the growing trend toward green or sustainable packaging. Grandview research believes this market is going to grow at a CAGR of 11.7% in volume over the forecast period from 2017-2025.
—Joseph Morton