FoodPacific Manufacturing Journal – July 2019

packaging

http://www.industrysourcing.com July 2019 FoodPacific Manufacturing Journal^21

of its bottles by 2030 while PepsiCo aims to recycle 75% of its
packaging wastes by 2030.
So, I see this as something that is irreversible. For food
packaging, there will definitely be greater demand for recycled
material, for quality recycle material.
Mr Swaters: There is increasing demand from consumers
and end-users to recycle and to reuse material, especially for
packaging. So, we can say that the packaging industry is also a
little forced to do it by the public opinion. They will not accept
nonrecycled products so you see bigger companies are more or
less forced to use recycled materials.

What opportunities do you see in terms of rPET
use in food packaging here in the ASEAN region,
particularly in Vietnam?

Mr Kao: I see great potential. With the plastic waste import
ban in China, there has been a shift in recycling opportunities
and business. Other countries such as Japan, Taiwan and Hong
Kong are looking to improve their in-house capability to handle
waste domestically instead of exporting to China. Companies
in these countries and in other areas of the world are therefore
looking for high-quality machines to meet international
regulations. But beyond obtaining the right machinery, they
have to learn the process. They have to make sure quality is
achieved; they have to improve the process of the washing line
and the entire recycling system for that matter.
In Vietnam, we have observed that a growing number of
recyclers are looking for good machines while at the same time
increasing their flexibility production-wise. These are essential
to ensure good quality, especially in much more value-added
applications, and to achieve better margins.

For rPET used in food contact packaging applications,
food safety is a top priority. How difficult is it to
achieve food grade certification?

Mr Swaters: Obtaining food approval is not a difficult
thing as long as you have the right machines, the right process
and good manufacturing. And yes, every machine must have an
approval certificate.
But that said, it’s a three-step system: There’s recycling,
there’s washing and then there’s the extruder and a vacuum
system. Then you must have a solid-state process behind. All
these help reduce the risk that something will go wrong and
boosts the chances of securing approval. In Asian countries,
however, not all governments are used to or as open to using
recycled products in food packaging. This means it might
take some time for these governments to explore, learn and be
convinced about the benefits of recycling for food applications
and then subsequently change the regulations in the country.

Mr. Kao, at the Asia Manufacturing: Food, Beverages
and Packaging Summit 2019 in Vietnam, you mentioned
PVC and stickers as the most difficult contaminants
to control in the washing line and may have harmful
effects on end-users. Please expound on this.

Mr Kao: There are many impurities inside the bottles. In
terms of food packaging, there are seven items in the quality

and food safety parameters

that we have to monitor. Two

of these are the PVC and the

sticker.

These two have to be

managed well in the washing

line because we have to [keep

it down to] less than 10ppm

after wash. The PVC should

have less than 10ppm. The

same goes for the sticker. The

technology that we have—the

hot washing reactor and the

lever remover—are able to

get rid of the contaminants

and keep them down to less

than 10ppm. It is quite a

challenging task but with well-

developed technology, years of

experience and the line design

itself, we are glad to be able to

keep contaminant levels down

and deliver to our commitment

to Indorama.

A company invested in a Chang Woen washing line

for HDPE bottle cleaning and recycling while a PET

PCR Recycler was installed in a customer in Bangkok.

What are the advantages of using these equipment for

food and beverage manufacturers?

Mr Kao: We have been conducting recycling activities

since 1992. The many years of experience and the know-

how that we’ve built for the past decades are definitely useful,

especially as we build on our reputation here in Asia, be it for

HDPE recycling or PET recycling.

As for the benefits of using our equipment ... You know, the

contaminants inside any kind of container or food packaging

will differ depending on the country. With our experience,

not only can we deliver but we are also able to educate the

customer. The other [thing] we bring to the table is that we are

fully capable of any kind of engineering tasks. Let’s take Japan,

for example. For Japan bottles we use OPS for contaminants.

OPS is very different from OPP. We can come up with solutions

for different contaminants with different characteristics.

Mr Swaters: I think it is also important to be mindful about

the fact that when a company buys a recycling line, it cannot be

just about CAPEX costs. There are also operation costs to think

about. There’s energy and water consumption. There’s also

waste generation. All these are very important in this recycling

industry, and Chang Woen manages all these well.

As you continue to expand your machinery line for

recycling, what can be expected of Chang Woen in

terms of new technology and services given the current

drive towards achieving a circular economy?

Mr Kao: We continue to work on new technology and

innovation because, you know, packaging changes from time

to time, the contaminants change from time to time and so, of

Demand for

rPET in food-

grade packaging is

expected to reach

2.85 million

tonnes to 3 million

tonnes by 2020

Ted Kao, Marketing

Manager

Chang Woen Machinery

Co. Ltd

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