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Sony in Japan, Swedish dairy introduce 'green' packs

Sony debuts computer discs in an overwrap made from biodegradable, compostable resin. Swedish dairy tries 2-L bottle for milk and juice made from a resin blended with calcium carbonate.

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NatureWorks™ degradable plastic resin from Cargill Dow (Minnetonka, MN) is now being used to create a degradable film that’s used as an overwrap for the Neige line of five mini audio discs (1) made by Sony for the Japanese market. Unitika, a Japanese film maker operating under license from Cargill Dow, extrudes the overwrap film.

NatureWorks PLA (polylactic acid) is a polymer made from renewable resources such as corn instead of petroleum, which is commonly used for other plastics.

Making the Sony package even more notable is that it’s the first commercial package to carry the new GreenPla designation (2) that lets consumers know the material is environmentally friendly and has compostable physical characteristics. The GreenPla designation is issued by the Biodegradable Plastics Society in Japan, a voluntary organization that is supported by the government. The certification process is based on an international standard that is expected to become a Japanese International Standard and eventually a worldwide ISO standard, says Yasunori Kanai, a consultant to Cargill Dow in Japan.

At least two Japanese government agencies have stated that the use of biodegradable plastics in packaging would exclude those packages from being subject to Japan’s year-old Containers and Packaging Recycling Law. That’s provided that the makers of degradable plastics establish what the agencies call a biorecycling system. The use of the GreenPla designation on the label is considered the first step in developing that system, says Kanai.

According to Aki Shimazu of Sony, the Unitika film is 1 mil thick and is gravure-printed in six colors using vegetable oil-based inks. Although the film itself cannot be heat-sealed, the Sony spokesperson says that Sony and Toppan Printing (Tokyo, Japan) have developed a special coating that permits heat sealing of the film. An inner carton is made of recycled paper.

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