Change drive

On 30th November 2022 a Proposal for a revision of EU legislation on Packaging and Packaging Waste was published by the European Commission.

What is most important in the Proposal for the supplement business is the intention of the Commission to ensure that all packaging is reusable or recyclable in an economically feasible way by 2030 and to reduce packaging, over-packaging and therefore packaging waste.

Sounds like a challenge, doesn’t it? Especially that, it is widely known that for a number of years the priority for the business was product safety and stability, while the environmental aspect has been somehow overlooked. However, with the plan to function in the circular economy, it is more than reasonable to get ready for the changes coming.

However, with the utmost respect to our mother nature, businesses must also think of their own future. It cannot go unnoticed that today consumers have a huge impact on how businesses function. According to Ipsos, 85% of consumers take sustainability aspects into account when making their shopping decisions. It is particularly important for the Z Generation and Millennials. They want to know what materials are used in production and how they were sourced. We cannot skip the fact that there are ca. 102 mln of Millennials in the EU (22% of the EU population) and ca. 80 mln of Gen Zers (18%) who represent a huge buying power.

Matrix of demands

So, how to make sure we comply with:

• regulations regarding food safety and stability,
• regulations on environment protection,
• consumers’ needs
• and at the same time we are really environmentally responsible becausethat’s how we want to act as a business, not just because it is required?

Where to start?

Obviously, first – identify which part of your product is most harmful for the environment. In dietary supplements it is blisters and sachets – non-recyclable, non-reusable but so likable and providing product safety. Is it possible to replace them? Yes! Can we have both – safe and environmentally friendly solution? Yes! Is it available? Yes!

Monoblister - what is it made of?

Environmentally friendly blisters, also called monoblisters, are made of polyester (PE) or polypropylene (PP) and Cyclic olefin copolymer (COC) in the thermoformable part. Standard blisters were made in this part of PVC or PVC/PVDC. The lidding part in monoblisters is made of polypropylene (PP) or Polyethylene terephthalate (PET) instead of aluminium that has been used so far.

For now, standard PVC/alu blister has to be classified as ‘Other’ in the waste management categories so non-recyclable. Monoblisters are all made of the same or very similar polymers which makes them recyclable and they can be safely disposed off as Plastic that can be re-processed.

When it comes to product safety, monoblisters has to appropriately selected for particular product forms. It would be recommended to conduct a product stability study. However, this might look like a potential risk, it is still just potential.

Monosachets – an excellent option for your powders

Another option to consider are mono polypropylene (PP) laminates for sachets. Similarly to monoblisters also designed to be ready-to-be recycled and offering high barrier. Laminates that have been used so far consist of a number of layers, normally including PE, PET and aluminium, sometimes also paper. They are inseparable and therefore cannot be recycled.

Financial aspects

One might think that there is still a lot of time till 2030 and so the decision to switch from today’s packaging material to new, sustainable monomaterials might be postponed.

However, one must also consider the timeline, especially if a stability study in the new packaging is required. Also, it must be kept in mind that a number of countries in the Europe have already implemented or are working on new taxes on packaging that is impossible to be recycled. It would definitely generate an extra cost that is not necessary if actions to become more sustainable are taken early enough.

To sum up, if you really want to, there are ways to make your supplement business more sustainablein practice. There is no need to greenwash your customers with ideas any more. It’s time to act.