The ecological carton/film composite developed by GEA and its industry partners can be separated at the end of the supply chain and will be available to see at GEA’s Packaging Technology Day in Germany on November 13.
The packaging was created in collaboration with the Roba Group, Schur Flexibles Germany and Van de Velde Packaging, formed almost entirely from natural raw or recycled material.
“FoodTray is a great alternative for customers looking to reduce plastic in packaging without compromising on shelf-life, food safety and presentation. It is also an in-line system that integrates into our thermoformer process,” said Greg Austin, UK sales manager, slicing and packaging equipment, GEA.
Reducing film content by up to 70%, fossil-based raw materials are replaced with fibres from renewable raw materials so that content is more than 80% recycled. At the same time, the cardboard and film can be separated and recycled by the consumer.
The film is thermoformed and sealed directly to the inside of the cardboard box, at which point the customer-specific packaging process can be implemented.
Investment costs are low and the result is ecologically sustainable packaging with MAP heights ranging from 20mm to 60mm and skin versions up to 20mm, while cardboard is used on the outer box.