Introducing Open Sesame® Fiber-based Tear Tape, a sustainable e-commerce packaging solution for the Earth from H.B. Fuller, in the latest edition of the Spotlight.
Unlike plastic tapes from competitors, Open Sesame® fibre-based tear tapes can be recycled directly alongside the board, and add usable fibre to the recycling stream in support of the circular economy.
Open a world of possibilities
As single-use plastic bans come into effect globally, packaging makers are looking for new ways to eliminate plastics and incorporate more sustainable elements into their designs. At H.B. Fuller, we are identifying new ways to help our customers design sustainable e-commerce packages, while maintaining the performance of traditionally plastic-based tear tapes.
H.B. Fuller engineers designed Open Sesame fibre-based tear tape for a mono-material paper recycling stream. Our breakthrough global patent-pending solution eliminates the plastic film used in standard tear tapes today and gets us one step closer to a plastic-free world.
At H.B. Fuller, we value our customers’ efforts toward designing sustainable packaging and improving wood recovery.
Design that stands out from the crowd versus plastic tapes packaging
Our solution is fibre-based and contains no synthetic fibres. It is made from sustainably sourced, fresh, wood-based fibres as certified by Forest Stewardship Council (FSC). This means the new tape solution:
- Adds useable fibre to the recycling stream, unlike traditional plastic film tape;
- Enables a mono-material recycling stream;
- Supports plastic-free packaging goals;
- Is over 99% repulpable*.
Also, there are critical quality attributes that customers have defined as important. Open Sesame® meets each of these requirements:
- The tear tape must demonstrate a frustration-free performance on bags, envelopes, lightweight mailers, and lightweight corrugated single-wall boxes that is consistent with existing standard tear tapes, with 100% tear through at 180° on paper bags and mailers.
- The bio-based content on the tear tape is maximized.
- The tape must maintain a fast line speed when applied inline or intermittently offline.
An enhanced unboxing experience
Like traditional tear tapes, this innovation allows anyone to effortlessly open a package in seconds. It delights consumers with an enhanced sustainable opening experience. It eliminates the unsightly and unrecyclable plastic tear tape used on the market today and allows the consumer to recycle the entire package by placing it directly in their recycling bin.
But there are still concerns about dealing with an increased amount of packaging waste. This reality is pushing the industry to rethink packaging and move away from single-use plastics. In fact, 50% of the plastic we use, we use just once and throw away. We at H.B. Fuller conducted a custom survey across 800 Millennial and Gen Z consumers in UK and Europe, and 78% of those surveyed are greatly concerned about e-commerce packaging waste.
Standard plastic film tapes today create plastic packaging waste that is either landfilled or burned. H.B. Fuller’s tear tape is the flagship product in a series of adhesive-coated fibre-based tapes that the company is launching to support the reduction of plastic pollution in packaging.
The role of sustainability in e-commerce
Sustainable packaging designs and materials are a top concern for consumers, brand companies, OEMs and packaging makers. With the accelerated growth rate of online shopping comes the reality of dealing with an increased amount of packaging waste and issues to solve related to recycling or finding other alternatives to plastic.
Statistics show that enough plastic is thrown away each year to circle the earth four times.
The challenge is that in e-commerce packaging today, plastic film tapes are not recyclable and must be separated out during the Old Corrugated Container repulping process. They also prevent the e-commerce package from being a mono-material uncontaminated paper recycling stream.
Open Sesame® fibre-based tear tape prioritises a sustainable mono-material paper recycling stream while maintaining a thrilling consumer “unboxing experience” of everyday packages used to ship goods from e-tailer to consumer. As a result of this innovation, H.B. Fuller received the sole Sustainability Award for Open Sesame fibre-based tear tape at the latest European Federation of Corrugated Board Manufacturers (FEFCO) technical seminar, where the product was officially launched.
Sustainable e-commerce packaging revolution
Are you ready to join us in the sustainable e-commerce packaging revolution?
We know that sustainability can mean so many things, on many different levels. We are trained members of the Amazon APASS certification, which has great standards around packaging testing to make sure your shipping box is optimized to the highest degree.
If you have a specific project or goals you are trying to achieve with your e-commerce packaging, want to move from plastic to fibre-based tear tapes, or do more with fewer materials, reach out to Tania Montesi, Global E-Commerce Business Development, or your local H.B. Fuller representative. We may already be working on the exact solutions you need, or you may bring your ideas to us and let us innovate for you.
hbfuller.com/sustainabletape
This content was sponsored by H.B. Fuller.
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