Confectionery producers have the vital ingredient for sustainable packaging

Rick Hindley, Executive Director of Aluminium Packaging Recycling Organisation (Alupro), explores how the confectionery industry can encourage consumers to keep aluminium packaging in the recycling ‘loop’.

Aluminium’s extraordinary versatility has made it indispensable to food and drink manufacturers. Alupro is encouraging producers to help get the message to consumers about how recyclable aluminium packaging is.

Aluminium is widely used for packaging solutions in the confectionery trade because it is lightweight, impermeable, strong and flexible, and also highly decorative – protecting and promoting a product at the same time.

By enabling products to be preserved for long periods without the need for refrigeration, aluminium packaging helps to prevent spoilage and so can contribute towards energy savings. For example, aluminium-wrapped chocolate products offer shelf-lives of up to a year.

Importantly, this versatile metal can be recycled again and again without ever losing its quality, and with consumer attention increasingly interested in the environmental impact of products, aluminium’s endless recyclability has become a very powerful message.

Recycling aluminium makes great sense, because it can be melted down and turned into other aluminium products over and over again. The recycling process saves up to 95% of the energy needed compared to making the metal from raw materials – so saving natural resources and cutting greenhouse gas emissions every time the metal is reprocessed.

“We’re seeing purchasing decisions being guided by the packaging material itself, not just the appearance of the packaging,” said Fredrik Rosén, Manager of the Market and Consumer Insight group at Innventia. “We’re also seeing a clear demand and a great need for smarter packaging.”

Rising to the aluminium recycling challenge

Impetus for smarter packaging is also coming from the European Commission, which has recently introduced proposals to encourage a ‘circular economy’, one in which resources are continuously recycled rather than the linear ‘take – make – dispose’ model. Within these new rules are higher recycling targets for packaging waste; positioning aluminium as a key target material for a more sustainable Europe.

To help the UK meet these increasingly challenging recycling targets Alupro is working on behalf of members across the packaging sector, together with partners from wider industry, local authorities and the recycling industry.

Alupro is a membership organisation representing the leading aluminium packaging producers, converters, packer fillers and reprocessors supplying the UK market. The role of Alupro is “to lead industry efforts to meet, and exceed, statutory recycling targets for aluminium packaging”.

Together with its members, Alupro is forming a strong evidence base for both the benefits and ease of recycling aluminium. The results speak for themselves: through consumer campaigns and shaping government policy, the amount of aluminium kept in the recycling loop is higher than ever – in 2014 48% of all aluminium packaging was recycled.

A number of factors have contributed to the rise of aluminium as a widely recycled material:

• Awareness raising of aluminium’s ‘endless recyclability’
• On-pack labelling informing consumers that all aluminium packaging, not just drinks cans, is widely recycled
• Myth-busting campaigns that give councils, and residents, confidence in recycling aluminium packaging
• Improved recycling infrastructure, developed in part by the aluminium industry to enable the recovery of ever greater amounts of aluminium
• Consumer campaigns such as ‘MetalMatters’ and ‘Every Can Counts’
• Seasonal campaigns to remind consumers to recycle aluminium all year round.

On-pack labelling

Featuring the recyclability message on packs can encourage consumers to recycle more. Alupro’s on-pack labels showcase the message that aluminium is endlessly recyclable, while allowing producers to show that they support the environment. All Alupro members can use this on-pack messaging, with members such as Baco using it on their packs of household foil and containers.

In addition, brands can feature the On-Pack Recycling Label (OPRL), which has become a well-recognised indicator of recyclability. OPRL’s recycling ‘swoosh’ logo, which states whether or not a material can be recycled, is increasingly influencing UK consumers’ purchasing decisions.

Jane Bevis, Chair of OPRL says: “We know 7 in 10 consumers act on this clear recyclability advice when they see it. 500 brands use our labels across hundreds of thousands of products, so that can make a real difference.”

Due to Alupro’s campaigning and myth-busting work with local authorities, the vast majority now collect all types of aluminium packaging – beverage cans, foil containers, caps and closures and foil wrappers, lids and household foil.  By the end of 2015, 86% of UK councils were collecting aluminium foil at the kerbside, up from just 35% in 2007. In addition, 96% councils are collecting aerosols at the kerbside, meaning both can now bear the OPRL “Widely Recycled” label.

Campaigning

Alupro runs a number of campaigns to help raise consumer awareness about what can be recycled. Seasonal campaigns encourage householders to recycle their Christmas turkey trays, Easter egg wrappers and summer picnic packaging, while other campaigns focus on drinks cans and aerosols.

One of Alupro’s ongoing campaigns, MetalMatters, offers cost-effective support to local authorities to help boost the recovery of aluminium packaging at the kerbside. Part-funded by industry, the MetalMatters programme is proven to increase all metal packaging recycling, and due to the high value of aluminium councils are achieving excellent returns on investment as a result.

Although aluminium represents 1% (by volume) of the domestic waste stream, it represents up to 25% of the value of materials collected at the kerbside.

The aluminium message is a simple one to communicate. The fact that it can be endlessly recycled into an array of ‘new’ and valuable items resonates with consumers, motivating them to recycle more.

By informing and reminding householders about how to recycle their metal packaging the amount of material recovered at the kerbside is increasing all the time. It’s good for local authorities, good for the packaging industry, and good for the environment.

Improvements in aluminium

According to the European Aluminium Foil Association (EAFA), the aluminium industry has significantly reduced the environmental impact of the aluminium foil used today and continues to initiate new and innovative ways to make foil even more sustainable.

Lightweight: By using thinner gauge aluminium foil to deliver the same functionality, both the aluminium and the energy needed to produce it are reduced. Over the past ten years, the European foil industry has improved production processes to reduce the gauge of foil used in packaging by 10-20%. Further reductions are anticipated over the coming decade.

Less energy and less scrap: Between 2005 and 2010, European aluminium foil producers reduced energy use by over 30% – as well as the amount of trimming waste, making reprocessing much more environmentally friendly. Since 1997, the sector has cut CO₂ emissions by a staggering 50%.

Responsible sourcing: The industry has fostered responsible sourcing of both primary and recycled aluminium for many years, driving even greater sustainability and transparency throughout the aluminium industry. In 2012 this movement culminated in the Aluminium Stewardship Initiative (ASI), set up by major producers, rollers and end users of aluminium foil. The ASI is not-for-profit, and is establishing, promoting and leading practices across the aluminium value chain in business ethics, environmental performance and social responsibility.

Increasing foil collection, recycling and recovery rates: Increasing the amount of aluminium foil that is collected for recycling reduces the amount of virgin aluminium required by the industry. Recycling aluminium uses just 5% of the energy that it takes to make primary aluminium, so the environmental benefits of using aluminium are improving all the time.

Success in the recovery of aluminium

The amount of aluminium collected in the UK for recycling is increasing all the time, and in 2014 the recycling rate for aluminium packaging in the UK reached 48%, with over 170,000 tonnes of aluminium packaging – primarily drinks cans, aluminium foil and aerosols – placed on the UK market.

When collected for recycling this material would be worth in excess of £60 million (US$ 94 million) to collectors. And it’s a growing market, with increasing sales of goods packaged in aluminium.

With its environmental footprint improving all the time, from sourcing and manufacturing through to recycling, aluminium is becoming the obvious packaging solution for more future-minded businesses.

Consumers are increasingly demanding responsible practice amongst manufacturers, and packaging considerations are a highly visible way to demonstrate that those priorities are shared.

About Alupro

Alupro acts as the voice of the industry on issues of government policy and legislative development.

Our broad knowledge of the aluminium recycling sector and deep understanding of domestic and European policy issues means we are ideally placed to serve our members and to offer advice and support on a range of issues.

Our members consist of:

• Aluminium producers and rollers
• Packaging converters – beverage can makers and foil converters
• Packer fillers
• Reprocessors and exporters
• Associate members

Alupro works in partnership with local authorities, the waste management industry and major brands to increase the amount of aluminium that is kept in the recycling ‘loop’. It does this through advocacy programmes, and by running consumer information campaigns to encourage citizens to recycle more. In addition, Alupro works with other organisations representing the wider packaging sector to deliver consistent messaging about the importance of recycling all packaging materials.

Through these diverse yet targeted efforts, Alupro maintains a high profile for aluminium in the eyes of consumers, industry and government.

Published in Confectionery Production – March 2016