UPM Biofore Magazine 1-2019

TEXT Saara Töyssy   PHOTOGRAPHY UPM

Plastic recycling – Are we moving in the right direction?

“WE WANTED TO offer a solution that is sourced entirely from the forest, using wood-based raw material both for the carton and the plastic coating,” notes Juha Oksanen from Elopak Finland.

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recycled along with cardboard just like before. Liquid products such as milk require a thin layer of plastic inside the carton to ensure product safety and preservability. We are all keen to collaborate to introduce a more responsible, eco-friendly,” says Juha Oksanen , Managing Director at Elopak Finland. The entire rawmaterial chain of UPMBioVerno is certified and its carbon footprint has been verified. “The wood comes from sustainably managed forests, the operation of the bioindustry is certified, and the climate benefits have been verified by Elopak in compliance with the ISCC standard,” states Helin. “The rawmaterial is strictly a residue of the forest industry and, moreover, it is sourced from nearby forests. Switching to renewable plastic reduces the carbon footprint of packaging by about 20%,” Oksanen sums up. The world’s first milk cartons coated with wood-based renewable plastic appeared in Finnish stores in February. 

An estimated 32% of all plastic ends up being dumped after just one use, reveals the 2016 New Plastics Economy report. The EU ban on single-use plastics will take effect in 2021. New, tougher requirements will also be introduced for producers of other plastic product categories. “The much-touted new legislation on single-use plastic products will not solve the huge recycling dilemma. Plastics are already a highly regulated product group. They have to be produced using REACH-compliant chemicals, and there is a staggering amount of legislation on recycling. If the EU directives on packaging were fully implemented in all European countries, there would be no need to dump any plastic at all at landfills,” says Vesa Kärhä , CEO of the Finnish Plastics Industries Federation. In Finland, the collection and recycling of consumer plastics is off to a slow start, but gradually catching up with Europe’s leaders, Switzerland and Sweden. “When you look at Europe’s leading recyclers, they have all observed a total ban on landfilling for a long time. In other words, they have totally outlawed a cheap landfill solution. The European plastic industry recommends the same, too. Naturally, it has to be carried out in a way that gives operators enough time to figure out what can be done about the issue. Recycling and energy plants have to be available,” Kärhä notes. The history of plastic reuse began in 1980, when it was first

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