Sustainable bags
In addition to standard PE and laminate, we also manufacture bags from more sustainable materials: Green PE, which is a bio-based plastic, and PIR and PCR, which are recycled plastics.
When it comes to PIR and PCR, you can choose the percentage of recycled material you want the bag to be made of, such as 30 or 60% recycled.
Below is a description of the different materials and their uses.
Green PE
Green PE means plastic produced from renewable raw materials. This can often involve hydrocarbons derived from sugarcane, tall oil, or used cooking oil.
Because the material is polymerized from scratch, quality can be ensured to the same degree as virgin material but with a lower climate impact.
Green PE can theoretically be used for all applications as a new raw material, but availability is more limited.
It is important to point out that the plastic is not compostable; the used plastic is recycled in existing recycling flows for plastic packaging.
PIR
When factory waste is recycled to make new plastic products, the material is usually called PIR, which stands for Post Industrial Recycled.
The great advantage of PIR is that the quality, due to the thorough sorting processes in the industry, remains quite close to virgin raw material.
The material is therefore widely used in industrial packaging and other products that do not come into contact with food but simultaneously have high demands on strength and durability.
Used plastic is recycled in existing plastic packaging recycling streams.
PCR
PCR stands for Post Consumer Recycled and, as the name suggests, consists of recycled plastic collected from end-users.
Because of this, the material is often more contaminated with, for example, paper, glue, and residues of other materials that can be difficult to wash and filter out in the recycling process.
Because of this, PCR is advantageously used in applications that do not have such high performance requirements, for example, industrial packaging and simpler packaging without food contact.
A common misconception regarding PCR is that the material cannot be recycled a second time, but this is a statement that is not true.
It is true that the material breaks down to some extent each time it is recycled. However, as long as there is the correct mix of PCR and virgin material in the new recycled raw material, the quality remains at a sufficient level for it to be used again.
The consumed plastic is recycled in existing sorting and recycling streams for plastic packaging.
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