Manufacturing tubes from renewable resources or recycled materials

Tubes made from renewable raw materials: naturalness and authenticity

The aesthetics of a tube can be the decisive impetus for a customer to buy at the point of sale. In addition to the ingredients of the product, consumers are also paying greater attention to environmentally friendly packaging. Aspects such as sustainability, waste avoidance and recyclability also influence consumers’ purchasing decisions. But manufacturers also attach importance to the look and feel of their packaging, which fulfills all functionalities and at the same time perfectly communicates the brand message to the outside world.

Tubes made from renewable raw resources and recycled materials are a wonderful way to implement such holistic concepts. For us, the perfect packaging is a harmonious combination of appearance, material and message. Because the inner values count just as much as the outer ones!

Visionary packaging: tubes made from renewable raw materials

One of the purposes of packaging is to convey a message in a credible way. Packaging made from renewable raw resources  supports the natural message of your cosmetics brand and stands out from the broad mass of traditional packaging. We work with you to select the right bioplastic depending on the factors of design, disposal route and recyclability. Our granulates are based on renewable raw materials and are either recyclable or biodegradable. This variety of material types enables us to find a tailor-made and resource-saving solution for every application.

High quality tubes made from bio-based polyethylene

Cosmetic tubes made from I’m green™ bio-based Polyethylene  (Bio-PE) combine sustainability and recyclability with shelf appeal to meet the demands of brand owners and end consumers. The tubes made from I’m green™ bio-based Polyethylene combine the required mechanical and barrier properties with appropriate ingredient resistance and good printability for high attractiveness even without outer packaging.

The bio-based polyethylene Green PE, which is produced from sugar cane, is especially suitable for the extrusion of tubes. Depending on requirements, customers can choose between different bio-based PE-HD, PE-LD and PE-LLD grades.

In addition, FKuR offers its own compounds based on bio-based polyethylene under the name Terralene®. In order to avoid wrinkling or stress whitening even after repeated use, plastics for the production of tubes must be very soft and elastic. In addition, however, a certain degree of rigidity is also required to ensure the dimensional stability of the packaging. With our customized Terralene® granules, we have succeeded in achieving a practically optimum combination of the desired properties.

Compared to biodegradable plastics such as PLA (poly-latid-acid), Terralene® offers an outstanding oxygen and water vapor barrier. Therefore, packaging of moisture and oxygen sensitive goods is possible

Terralene® has the same properties as conventional polyethylene and can be processed on existing production lines without any adjustments. In contrast to the production of fossil PE, it is not crude oil but ethylene obtained from sugar cane that serves as the basis for the production of bio-PE.

Every plant binds CO2 during its growth through photosynthesis and stores the carbon in the form of biomass. The bio-PE we use is made from the rapidly renewable plant sugar cane. As a result, each metric ton of this bio-based plastic stores about 3.09 metric tons of CO2 and sequesters carbon over the entire product life cycle.

Tubes made from bio-based plastics: 100% recyclable

Tubes made from renewable resources, specifically with drop-in bioplastics such as Terralene® and I’m green™ bio-based Polyethylene, allow sustainable concepts to be implemented in two ways: on one hand, a tube made of bioplastic consists of renewable resources, and on the one hand it can be recycled via existing recycling systems after use, thus turning the packaging into a valuable material that can be reused in the manufacture of other products – a closed circle modeled on nature.

By using a renewable raw material, Terralene® and I’m green™ bio-based Polyethylene are an important step towards conservation of fossil resources and reduction of harmful greenhouse gas emissions.

Recycled material for the production of tubes

To meet consumer demand for the highest possible sustainability, the industry is implementing measures such as the continuous reduction of packaging weight. However, since the technical possibilities are largely exhausted, the choice of materials is now at the forefront of improving environmental compatibility. In this context, in addition to renewable resources, recycled materials are playing an increasingly important role. If you are interested in using recycled materials or in learning how tubes made from recycled materials can be combined with bioplastics, please feel free to contact us.