technology

Plastic pollution is a pressing environmental issue, and University of Kentucky Martin-Gatton College of Agriculture, Food and Environment researchers are leading the charge with an innovative solution. 

The college’s Department of Biosystems and Agricultural Engineering (BAE) is partnering with the UK Department of Chemical and Materials Engineering to tackle the tiny, often unseen, particles of plastic now found in the world’s oceans.  

Following the recent announcement of Kingsmoor's brand refresh and their new strapline, "Forming A Better Future”, this renewable energy project aims to serve as  testament to the company's dedication to this vision. 

The digital deposit return scheme will encourage recycling through a 20p monetary reward for customers who scan one of 20,000 unique QR codes using their smartphones. The QR codes are printed onto Ocado’s own-brand two and four-pint milk bottles – which retail at £1.20 and £1.45 respectively – and are available for delivery nationwide.

The rewards will appear in a digital wallet in the Bower app and then can be withdrawn to their bank accounts. After the first 20,000 scans, consumers will be offered other benefits and perks instead of the 20p reward.

With over 40,000 Fast-Moving Consumer Goods (FMCG) launches monthly across 273+ categories, the competition for shelf placement and consumer attention has intensified. Notably, at the point of purchase, product packaging plays a pivotal role, with 76% of consumers saying it influences their final purchase decisions, while 66% of consumers try new products solely due to their packaging.

Recycling technology company Polytag and sustainable waste management company Biffa have partnered as part of plastics, resource, efficiency and recycling charity RECOUP’s 26-week long “Bottle to Bottle” project, in conjunction with label printer Interket UK and Arla Foods and Müller Milk & Ingredients.

The project will see Co-op’s water bottles and Aldi and Ocado’s milk marked with UV 2D tags, printed by Interket UK, with a Polytag UV tag reader retrofitted onto the plastic conveyor at Biffa’s Teesside MRF in the northeast of England.

LyondellBasell PB-1 resins are commonly used in consumer packaging applications for easy-open packaging and film modification for seal initiation temperature providing:

• Broad seal-peel temperature range

• Consistent and reproducible peel performance

• Adjustable peel force to end-use requirements

• Similar initiation and propagation peel force 

• "Whitening" with "Smooth & Clean" peel surface

• Good seal integrity 

• Easy processability