The discussion surround sustainable packaging material is far from over, and at Circular they are also very aware of that. Provided that it is actually recycled, plastic surpasses the usual alternatives. "If plastic waste does not end up in nature and the ocean, then a plastic bag is a better choice than a paper or cotton bag."
Earlier we reported on the founding of Circular, an initiative of Crea Print Group, Fresco Flowers and Kras Recycling, that wants to make the Royal FloraHolland plastic waste stream more sustainable. Together they have set up a system with which polyethylene (PE) and polypropylene (PP) covers are 100% collected and 100% reprocessed by using modern up-cycling techniques. Early this year, that translated into a label, and now there is also the foil.
In the week of the FloraHolland Trade Fair, Fresco Flowers introduced the 100% Recycled foil for its grower Timaflor on the auction clock in Aalsmeer. This foil is made from the plastic waste (flower foil) from Royal FloraHolland.
Fresco Flowers has developed this concept in collaboration with Circular Plastics and is, therefore, helping to reduce the one-time use of new plastic as much as possible. Because the foil has been recycled, it is unfortunately not possible to make it 100% transparent. "But the story behind it, that new foil can be made from old flower sleeves, we consider so strong that we dare to give up on transparency but retain the sustainable appearance. The foils are printed with organic inks and of course, it protects the products during transport."
Besides, the new sleeves work perfectly on the current Fresco Flowers machines without any adjustments. A saving on the use of energy can even be made, which in turn has a positive impact on the CO2 footprint.
The 100% Recycled foil was presented by Fresco Flowers and Circular at the FHTF and IFTF. The start will be made with one variety Mariyo! from Timaflor, and subsequently, several more varieties will be rolled out, mid-2020 several growers within Fresco will also switch to recycled foil.
For more information:
Fresco Flowers
Legmeerdijk 313
Location No. 143-71
Aalsmeer
Netherlands
www.frescoflowers.nl