Frying pan covers made from used frying oil!

• Packaging made of SABIC polymer using biorenewable raw materials approved through the mass balance system and extracted from the frying oil used, achieves a reduction in the carbon footprint by 30% and a reduction in the thickness of the joint packaging layer by 20%.
• This initiative aims to build an integrated value chain between SABIC, Lamb Weston and OPACKGROUP.

SABIC has joined Lamb Weston, a major global brand and producer of frozen potato products, in a closed circular project to develop lightweight and sustainable packaging bags using a thin multi-layer film structure. At least 60% of packaging materials consist of polymers derived from used cooking oil (UCO).

SABIC, Lamb Weston and OPACKGROUP are collaborating on this project to create sustainable packaging made from biorenewable polyethylene from used cooking oil, specifically for frozen potato products.

The process begins by collecting the used cooking oil from the Lamb Weston facilities and then converting it into a vital raw material that is used to produce SABIC's HDPE (High Density Polyethylene) and SUPEERTM MllDPE (Linear Low Density Polyethylene with Metallocene Technology) polymers from SABIC, which are certified as biorenewable sources. These polymers are then made into a multi-layer film by Oerlemans Plastics, a member of OPACKGROUP, to wrap Lamb Weston's semi-fried frozen potato products.

Khalid Al-Jalawi, Global Director of Circular Economy Business at SABIC, stated:
“We are excited to collaborate with Lamb Weston and OPACKGROUP on this closed circular project, as it embodies the concept of a circular economy by making the best use of cooking oil used to produce recyclable circular polymers.”

The new Lamb Weston packaging has a renewable content of at least 60%, certified polymer and even film, in line with the internationally recognized mass balance system ISCC PLUS to track and monitor renewable content in materials.

Sebastian Bissimms, Vice President of Commercial for EMEA at Lamb Weston, commented:

“Distributors, retailers, and consumers are becoming more aware of their environmental impact, and are increasingly in favor of sustainable packaging. In response to this trend, we have developed an industry-leading solution for wrapping our frozen semi-fried potato products using 60% bio-based round plastic extracted from the cooking oil used in our facilities and certified by ISCC PLUS. By relying on SABIC's biorenewable polymer, we were able to reduce the carbon footprint of retail bags by 30%. This innovation is in line with consumer expectations for consumer brands to be more environmentally friendly and serves our goals of halving food waste, reducing the carbon footprint of our products by 25% and switching to circular production by 2030.”

Laura Hanegraff, sales manager at Oerlemans Plastics (affiliated with OPACKGROUP), added:
“This project builds on the efforts we have made with SABIC to promote low-carbon and renewable products in our sector, and represents significant progress. It also allows us to offer high quality flexible packaging film products made from renewable materials derived from the cooking oil used.”

The 20% film thickness reduction formula — with an average bag weighing only 10 grams — reduces the carbon footprint by about 30% compared to previous bags. SABIC HDPE resin provides high strength and flexibility in the film structure, while SUPEER MllDPE resin gives excellent bag sealing ability. Both materials are compliant with the requirements of the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) and the U.S. Food and Drug Authority (FDA) for food contact.

After extensive testing and evaluations, Lamb Weston launched its first frozen potato products in September in the United Kingdom and the Netherlands, packaged in bags made of multi-layer films using renewable and SABIC-approved PE polymers.

Source: designworld