Sustainable Packaging Solutions

General, Innovation, Sustainable Packaging / July 21, 2020

Eagle Flexible Packaging is fully committed to be the industry leader in sustainable packaging solutions for a wide range of food and non-food industries. Our compostable, recyclable, renewable, post-consumer recycled content, and premium packaging materials are chosen specifically to minimize negative environmental impact.

“Sustainable development is development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.”
Source: Report of the World Commission on Environment and Development: Our Common Future

Sustainable Flexible Packaging Defined

Criteria for determining the sustainability of packaging in no certain order:

• Is beneficial, safe & healthy for individuals and communities throughout its life cycle
• Meets market criteria for performance and cost
• Is sourced, manufactured, transported, and recycled using renewable energy
• Optimizes the use of renewable or recycled source materials
• Is manufactured using clean production technologies and best practices
• Is made from materials healthy throughout the life cycle
• Is physically designed to optimize materials and energy
• Is effectively recovered and utilized in biological and/or industrial closed loop cycles

Source: Sustainable Packaging Coalition

Sustainable Flexible Packaging Options at Eagle Flexible Packaging

Providing packaging material that sustains the product through it’s intended life is paramount at Eagle Flexible Packaging. Reducing the amount of material used to package your product is a great step to lowering the negative impact it can have on the environment. The lightweight preformed pouch products and roll stock from Eagle Flexible Packaging provide a higher product-to-package ratio, help create fewer emissions during transportation and take up less space in landfills after use. We offer a wide variety of sustainable packaging material solutions to help brands take the next step forward as compostable and recyclable packaging innovators. In addressing sustainability, Eagle Flexible Packaging considers both beginning-of- life and end-of- life of the packaging materials used.

Compostable Packaging (Materials can address both beginning and end-of- life)

The compostable packaging materials we use are ASTM D6400 certified. New biopolymers are ever evolving and being developed each day. We continually research and work with our trusted suppliers to offer customers various options to create a functional package that meets their sustainable packaging needs.

Recyclable Packaging (End–of–Life)

Recyclable packaging is a product or package that can be collected, separated, or otherwise recovered from the waste stream through an established recycling program
for reuse or use in manufacturing or assembling another item. Eagle Flexible Packaging provides customers with packaging that is recyclable in specific programs.
Source: Federal Trade Commission

Renewable Packaging (Beginning-of-Life)

At Eagle, we offer the technical assistance needed to develop a renewable package. This term means that the raw materials (in whole or part) used to create the packaging, are derived from a natural resource and/or, a resource that can be renewed, such as wood pulp, etc. A large majority of our compostable packaging also falls into this category.

Materials with Post-Consumer Recycled Content (Beginning-of-Life)

Post-consumer recycled material refers to everything we toss into the recycling bin, such as empty plastic bottles or aluminum cans. These materials are collected by local recycling programs and shipped to recycling facilities where they are sorted into bales based on material. The bales are then purchased and melted or ground into small pellets and molded into new bottles, cans, or tubs. At Eagle, we offer flexible materials that are made from post-consumer recycled content.
Source: Sustainable Packaging Coalition

This is the first in a series of monthly blogs relating to Eagle Flexible Packaging and our Sustainable Packaging options. In the meantime if you have any questions or would like more information please contact us at info@eagleflexible.com or call (630) 406-1760.