The U.S. Flexible Film Initiative (USFFI) has announced its official launch as a non-profit industry coalition, aiming to build a ‘scalable, responsible and circular’ system for the recovery and recycling of flexible plastic packaging in the United States.
The coalition states that while flexible films are among the fastest-growing packaging formats due to their efficiency and lightweight properties, they remain one of the most challenging materials to recycle. The USFFI seeks to meet this challenge by supporting the recovery of post-consumer flexible films and ensuring they are recycled into high-quality, marketable end products.
The non-profit hopes to catalyze long-term sustainable solutions by collaborating with producers, material recovery facilities (MRFs), reclaimers, and end markets. USFFI’s founding corporate members include Nestlé, PepsiCo, Mars, Mondelēz International, Hill’s Pet Nutrition and General Mills.
The USFFI says it will soon launch its first Request for Proposals (RFP) to identify and support demonstration projects - beginning in California - that prove the technical and economic viability of recovering and recycling MRF-collected flexible films. The coalition believes these demonstrations will help inform future investments, contracting models and policy approaches that can be scaled nationally.
The USFFI is governed by a board of industry players representing private sector stakeholders and non-profit advisors, responsible for setting strategic priorities, reviewing demonstration outcomes and ensuring accountability and transparency in fund allocation and program performance.
In May, Freshr announced it had completed an oversubscribed seed funding round for its proprietary antimicrobial coating for recycled, recyclable, and compostable fresh fish packaging – a solution designed to extend shelf life, reduce waste, and save money. The coating technology can reportedly be chemically immobilized into post-consumer recycled, recyclable, and compostable materials, distributed in rolls, in hopes of easier implementation compared to standard modified atmosphere packaging (MAP).
More recently, RKW Group introduced PE films with an integrated EVOH barrier into its RKW Horizon range, based on MDO technology and said to offer ‘a recyclable, sustainable solution’ when combined with its ProTec sealing films. The RKW Horizon range reportedly meets the high demands of flexible packaging manufacturers for tear resistance, transparency, gloss, printability, and good processability.
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