Designing flexible packaging so it can be easily collected, sorted and recycled is a fundamental of the circular economy. But how does that happen in practice? CEFLEX and stakeholders Kraft Heinz and Gualapack take you behind the product and into the detail in this case study.

1. DESIGNING FOR A
CIRCULAR ECONOMY
D4ACE in ACTION
Case Study
8 July 2021

2. 5 Steps to Build a Circular Economy for Flexible Packaging

3. Why is design of flexible packaging critical?
Regulatory pressure
for recyclability
Meet industry’s own
sustainability
commitments
Address wider
environmental concerns
55%+ 100%

4. What do they hope to achieve?
• Act as a catalyst – facilitate and enable value chain to design recyclable packaging
• Provide waste management and recycling companies increased confidence to
invest and develop infrastructure needed
Give clarity to whole value
chain to design flexible
packaging for collection,
sorting and recycling
Helping to increase
levels of collection,
sorting and recycling
Producing higher quality
recycled materials, kept in
economy and used in
sustainable end markets
Aim of D4ACE guidelines

5. Designing for a circular economy

6. • Preference for mono-PE and
mono-PP
• Easier to recycle
• Contribute to improved
quality of recycled materials
• Keep as much financial value
in recycled materials as
possible
Preference for
mono-material

7. Guidance on all key elements of a flexible packaging structure
ceflex.eu/guidelines

8. Today’s Panel
Filippo
Paizis
Sheila
Bagattini
Graham
Houlder
Michelle
Marrone
Stefano
Manfredi
Sergio
Russo

9. Kraft Heinz
Plasmon
Plasmon Fully
Recyclable Mono-
material Pouches
Filippo Paizis
Sheila Bagattini

10. THE PLASMON BRAND
ü Strong Italian Brand since 1902
ü Leader in Baby Food Market in Italy (Babies 0-3 y.o)
ü Complete range of products
ü Awareness of 99%
ü Hero product: The iconic Plasmon Biscuit

11. PARENTS NEEDS
PARENTS WANT BRANDS THAT ARE MORE RESPONSIBLE AND
COMMITTED TO BUILD A BETTER FUTURE FOR THEIR BABIES

12. OUR MISSION
SUPPORT PARENTS DURING THE DIFFICULT BUT
AMAZING JOURNEY OF GROWING A BABY
Let’s grow together the future of Italy

13. OUR MANIFESTO
Our commitment in the Made in Italy selecting local
producers who choose the best quality raw materials
respecting the territory
We develop products that help babies developing
autonomy and the cognitive system during their first
steps in life
We believe in the need to reduce the environmental
impact at every step: from field to product, from the
logistics to sustainable packaging
We support families in need across Italy

14. KH COMMITMENT ON SUSTAINABILITY
Energy consumption &
Conservation
Use of electricity from renewable
sources
Innovation through sustainable
packaging
Reduce our consumption in manufacturing facilities by 15%
Most of the energy used will come from renewable sources
100% of our packaging recyclable, reusable or compostable
15%
100%
Waste Management
Reduce our waste across manufacturing facilities by 20%.
20%
>50%
Water consumption &
Conservation
Reduce our water consumption in manufacturing facilities by 15%.
15%
2025 Goals

15. SUSTAINABILITY: TRENDS AND CONSUMER NEEDS
61%* of
consumers say to be
interested in changing their
habits in order to reduce the
environmental impact
*Surely of more probably
67% of Italian
mums declare their
habits are more environmental
friendly than in the past
To have sustainable packaging
Italians are ready to give up to :
47%
46%
40%
34%
16%
15%
8%
4%
DESIGN
PACKAGING TYPE
BRAND
PACKAGING DIMENSION
RANGE OFPRODUCTS
TASTE
TEXTURE
OTHER
Fonte: Nielsen State of Nation, 2020

16. SUSTAINABILITY: TRENDS AND CONSUMER NEEDS
27%
24%
19%
55%
56%
52%
18%
20%
29%
High quality and security standards
Ecofriendly and sustainable materials
Social Responsibility claims
Si si poco No
Are you ready to pay more for sustainable products?
Fonte: Nielsen State of Nation, 2020
Yes Not so much No

17. SUSTAINABILITY TREND: FOCUS ON POUCHES
MUMS WELCOME POUCHES RECYCLABILITY
“it’s easy to throw away, you just
flatten it and that’s it, it’s not like
the glass jars” 6-18
Source: Kantar Shoppercape, March 2021

18. OUR PLAN TO SUSTAIN THE PILLARS
SUSTAINABILITY
PILLAR
MANIFESTO
5
EDUCATION PILLAR CHARITY
PILLAR
ALL YEAR LONG Q2 Q3 Q4

19. THE FIRST FULLY RECYCLABLE BABY FOOD POUCHES
IN ITALY

20. PRODUCT ANNOUNCEMENT
LANDING PAGE
MEDIA ACTIVATION
IN STORE
INFLUENCER ACTIVATION
CEFLEX WEBINAR
PR & LINKEDIN
AMPLIFICATION
360 ACTIVATION PLAN
TGT:
125k IMPRESSIONS
CTR: 0,20%

21. POS MATERIAL AND EXECUTION

22. SEE: https://youtu.be/imS9ExmIrOU

23. PLASMON FULLY RECYCLABLE POUCHES IN 2021
FRUIT DESSERT
85 g
100 g

24. Develop new
or replace
the old?
Gualapack’s quest to
achieve a recyclable
pouch
Michelle
Marrone

25. WHY
Recyclable, reusable or
compostable by 2030
Meet KH - Plasmon
sustainability commitments
Give consumers
environmentally sustainable
packaging
At Gualapack, we realised that raw materials are responsible for nearly
60% of the carbon footprint related to our most iconic product:
the 4-layer PET / Alu / PET / PE pouch
Lightweight Recyclable

26. • Make a pouch that is designed to be recyclable, compatible
with state-of-the-art mechanical recycling across the EU
• Maintain convenience, appearance, shelf life and
performance
Not even the most well-intentioned brands were willing to take a
recyclable pack if it meant giving up something! Baby Food
brand cannot jeopardize safety for environmental sustainability.
WHAT
No one should be able to tell the difference from our standard
…. Except the RECYCLER !

27. We decided to replace all our raw materials with only one
polymer: Polypropylene
We needed PP to do all kinds of things:
• Seal pouch
• Seal spout
• Print
• Provide Barrier
• Hot fill, pasteurize
• Baby food compliance EU & FDA
HOW

28. WHO
CEFLEX
Increase
value
chain
action
CEFLEX
Help
shape
D4ACE
guidelines
Kraft Heinz +
Plasmon
Testing and
prototypes
TOMRA
End of
life
testing
Collaboration Innovation
Progress
2017+ 2019+

29. D4ACE
• Spouts, closures, zip
• Same material as main body
Functional features
• Lighter colours preferred
• Maximum 5% of total
structure weight
• Carbon-black free
Inks and pigments
• <1g/cm3
Density
Fillers
• Minimal levels
• Maximum 5% of total weight
• Key in functionality of laminate
Adhesives
• EVOH, AlOx, SiOx
• Max 5% of
structure weight
Barriers
Monomaterial
• Full compatibility
at >90%

30. Step D4ACE applied to Pouch5
* Includes BOPP, Sealing PP and Clear Barrier BOPP
* Inorganic+Organic Barrier
D4ACE thresholds for compatibility with
mechanical recycling:
• Plastics >90% mono-material
• Adhesive <5%
• Barrier coatings/layers <5% each
• Ink <5%
% relate to total packaging structure weight
Barrier 0.55%*
Adhesive 2.3%
Ink 1.1%
PP 96%*
Film component PP 91%

31. Step
• Pouches had to be made by the millions – a challenge!
• Key ingredients = in-house capability in Gualapack and a
solid partner in Kraft-Heinz:
• Lamination: dimensional stability and temperature control
• Pouch making: narrow sealing window
• Filling: rigid material, more grip
• Shelf life studies: no aluminum, new barrier challenge
• EU and FDA food approval
From prototype to mass
distribution…

32. Step
Walk the Talk ! Sorting and Re-Extrusion at Scale
SORTING
Proof of correct sorting at scale:
NIR Identification = rigid PP
EXTRUSION
Extrusion at scale, Injection
Moulding and mechanical
characterization of re-PP
RECYCLED PP
Recycled PP is ready for
another life !

33. TAKE AWAYS
We were able to respond to a specific need
of Kraft Heinz for its iconic baby food brand,
Plasmon
1
We designed a recyclable monomaterial PP
pouch which adheres to D4ACE guidelines.
We proved that it could be made on existing
machines and filled on industrial lines with
no major investment.
We were able to achieve shelf life and
organoleptic performance that meet
Plasmon standards, without any change to
the recipe.
We proved correct identificaton and sorting
at scale of Pouch5 as rigid PP in Germany
and elsewhere in the EU, on existing
infrastucture.
We have written a new, all-Italian, page in
the history of baby food packaging, for a
more sustainable future of the young
generations!
2
3
4
5
6

34. Kraft Heinz
Plasmon
Technical context &
Challenges
Sergio Russo

35. Packaging Sustainability
Kraft Heinz ESG Strategy & Goals
Pioneering in recyclable pouches with
Plasmon Squeeze, Taste and Recycle (me)

36. Strong & Challenging
Technical Validation Process
Shelf Life Study
• Packaging material properties characterization
• Oxygen and Light barrier performance
• Product sensory and color profile evaluation
Shelf Life
Test
Filling
Trial
Machinability
Trial
Manufacturing
Batch
Half Day Run On Market
Shelf
Material specification improvements across validation
• Bag making process and design optimization
• Mechanical adjustments on the line
• Pouch resistance improvement

37. TAKE AWAYS
18 months implementation plan from idea
generation to launch in market
1
+90.000 pouches tested on industrial scale
+1.000 hours spent in Production for
testing and for quality checks
+3.500 pouches analysed in different
universities / plants / laboratories
.
12 months shelf life study for product and
pack characterization
.
10 million fruit pouches being recyclable.
Removing nearly 75 tonnes of plastic from
being sent to landfill every year
2
3
4
5
6

38. Open Discussion
Filippo
Paizis
Sheila
Bagattini
Graham
Houlder
Michelle
Marrone
Stefano
Manfredi
Sergio
Russo

39. DESIGNING FOR A
CIRCULAR ECONOMY
D4ACE in ACTION
Case Study
8 July 2021
ceflex.eu/guidelines

40. ceflex.eu
@MissionCircular