Seeking New Materials, Coatings, Methods and Technologies to Improve Packaging and Polymer Sustainability

Plastic waste and its impact on the planet is a broad, systemic issue that our consumers care deeply about, and which requires a holistic response. To deliver on our goals of making all Packaging Recyclable by 2025, we are committed to using recyclable packaging as part of our active contribution to reduce packaging waste and establish a circular economy for packaging

Requirements

• Food grade (direct food contact) Easy for consumers to recycle or re-use product packs after use/ Has high potential for recyclability or positive sustainability credentials Innovative new products made from gum bolus that connect with our consumers Technology accelerates decomposition of the polyolefin polymers into reusable monomers or other constituents Potential to be affordable at scale if new infrastructure is necessary to implement. Potential for reasonable return on investment

Possible solution areas

• Heat or cold sealable single polymer structures with high barrier. Novel polymer composites out of naturally occurring materials that are compatible to existing recycling capabilities. For polyolefin breakdown: Enzymatic decomposition of polymers in recycling stream/ Package coating (controlled activation of enzymatic decomposition) and or other new methods and approaches to material design and decomposition (design a polymer specifically to be easily decomposed) Additives to gum bolus to make them more biodegradable

Discarted solutions

We are not interested in well-established commercially alternatives such as glass and metal/ Traditional recycling methods / compostable solutions