Paper

The Healthcare Plastics Recycling Council (HPRC) has released guidelines intended to help product and packaging designers improve the recyclability of disposable plastic products. “Design Guidelines for Optimal Hospital Plastics Recycling” was produced by HPRC’s technical working group, which comprises technical experts from HPRC members BD, Cardinal Health, DuPont, Engineered Plastics, Hospira, Johnson & Johnson, Kimberly Clark, and Waste Management. (Three new members that joined this past fall--Baxter, Eastman, and Philips--participated in reviews.)

MeadWestvaco Corp. is reporting that its Mebane, NC, packaging plant received Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) Chain of Custody certification in February 2011. The facility is already certified by the Sustainable Forestry Initiative (SFI). MWV’s Mebane operation supplies printed packaging materials to pharmaceutical companies.

Proteus Packaging has obtained chain-of-custody certifications under the Sustainable Forestry Initiative (SFI) and the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) as part of the company’s corporate responsibility initiative.
 
The SFI and FSC certifications enable Proteus to offer clients packaging materials that have been traced to responsibly managed woodlands, the company reported in a press release. Both SFI and FSC employ third-party audits to ensure continued compliance with their extensive criteria. 
 

Shorewood Packaging, a business of International Paper, reports that its manufacturing facility in Kunshan, China, has been awarded Chain-of-Custody (C-O-C) certification from the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) and the Programme for the Endorsement of Forest Certification (PEFC). In addition, the company’s facility in Guangzhou, China, which received FSC C-O-C certification in 2009, has been awarded PEFC C-O-C certification.

Both facilities produce paperboard packaging for use in the personal care, OTC pharmaceutical, and other industries.

Chesapeake (Bucks, United Kingdom) is offering its customers in healthcare and other sectors a paperboard concept that can provide a 3-D quality to any package. Impressions is formed by using a low-energy process for forming a paperboard material into distinctive shapes.

This exciting development can help promote a brand through representations of tactile bubbles on a tube to replicating the distinctive shape of a bottle or jar. Impressions can also be formed into a pod to hold a liquid or paste, offering a more environmentally responsible alternative to plastic packaging.

Neenah Paper (Alpharetta, GA) has added a new single-ply board consisting of 100% postconsumer fiber content for folding cartons. Environment Folding Board 100 PC 18 pt (125 lb cover) offers dimensional stability, enabling the product to flow through scoring, folding, and assembly processes efficiently. It can also be printed, embossed, foil stamped, die cut, and glued, suiting it for premium packaging such as folding boxes for the health, cosmetic, and fragrance markets.

Colbert Packaging Corp. (Lake Forest, IL) has received Sustainable Forestry Initiative and Forest Stewardship Council Chain of Custody Certifications following a rigorous audit of three facilities. These two new certifications encompass Colbert’s operations in Lake Forest, IL, and Elkhart, IN, certifying three facilities for meeting strict tracking requirements to ensure that certified paperboard used in these facilities comes from a well-managed forest. The certifications are a key component of Colbert’s sustainability goals.

Twelve packaging industry participants attended a comprehensive 2-day Paperboard Packaging Seminar at the Sonoco Institute of Packaging Design and Graphics on the campus of Clemson University, Clemson, SC.

At Pack Expo in Las Vegas last week the paper-based packaging industry launched "The Responsible Package," an industrywide campaign to promote the sustainable packaging solutions provided by paper-based products. The campaign is the first time  paper-based packaging companies have come together with a coordinated approach, explained Peter Heist, vice president of International Paper and chairman of the Paperboard Packaging Alliance (PPA).