Industry News
Choose plastic packaging for a greener future, says Prism
While virgin plastic is rightly being phased out of canned drinks packaging, recent research has highlighted the improved sustainability outcomes of using recycled plastic solutions in place of paperboard cartons and carriers. According to a comparative cradle- to-grave Life Cycle Analysis (LCA), 100 per cent recycled rHDPE PakTech multipack handles outperform paperboard options (four and six pack) on climate change metrics including acidifi cation, eutrophication, health impact, smog air and energy demand, delivering two to fi ve times lower CO2 impact compared to paperboard alternatives. Lightweight and fully recyclable, rHDPE handles represent a signifi cant
reduction in packaging volume compared to paperboard multipack options, as well as substantially lower CO2 and energy demand than fi bre-based carton alternatives such as cartons and carriers. As a result, they align fully with the expectations of the Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) policy and are therefore associated with the lowest tier of EPR fees.
Pete
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First UV flexographic ink for CPG labels made with
carbon-negative, algae-based pigment launched The launch comes in tandem with its fi rst commercial application: beverage labels printed by NextGen Label Group for the brand many consider to be the enviro-tech leader of the bottled water and larger beverage industry, Waiākea Hawaiian Volcanic Beverages. The innovation was sponsored and supported by Waiākea, which earlier this year announced it would be the fi rst food and beverage brand globally to commercialise algae-based inks on its labels across its supply chain. The brand fi rst began R&D with partner Living Ink Technologies fi ve years ago, aiming to replace petroleum-based carbon black ink with an algae-derived alternative for all fl exographic applications.
Building on that concept, ACTEGA and Living Ink Technologies
entered into a joint development agreement in 2024 and collaborated with Waiākea to advance the formulation, combining the vision of bio-based pigment expertise with advanced coating technology, ink formulation capabilities and a nationally distributed beverage brand to bring the idea to scale for wider industry use. Their goal: to bring a high-performance, UV-curable fl exo ink to market that meets the print industry’s rigorous technical demands while dramatically reducing carbon emissions.
6
April 2026
www.convertermag.com
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