ALBIS and MEDICOS, a leading manufacturer and expert in packaging solutions for the beauty and food markets, have worked closely together to develop a sustainable cosmetic jar and cap answering the requirements of the circular economy. The target was to reduce the use of virgin, fossil-based materials by using a minimum of 30 percent recycled or renewable feedstock and to design the packaging for reuse and recycling, which will reduce the product’s CO2 footprint.

After in-depth analysis, the decision was made to use SK Chemicals’ ECOTRIA copolyester with 30 percent recycled PET content for the jar. For the inner pot and cap, the perfect solution was to use CirculenRenew^® polypropylene from LyondellBasell, containing 100 percent bio-sourced and ISCC PLUS certified material. CirculenRenew^® is made from bio-naphtha, which is produced from renewable raw materials such as residues from vegetable oils and organic waste.

The use of ECOTRIA^® and CirculenRenew^® results in a significant saving of CO2 emissions compared to fossil-based products. Furthermore, MEDICOS improved the concept with a solution to offer the possibility of REUSING the jar with a pot REFILL.

“The chosen solution ensures our sustainable requirements are achieved without compromising product properties, food contact approvals, color and crystal clear transparency. We are happy to show how we can reduce the carbon footprint of our packaging and how it could be REUSABLE and RECYCLED”, says Denis Moiraud, Managing Director of Medicos. “As with traditional plastics, our sustainable packaging is easily customizable, for example by printing customer logos on the jar, the cap and the inner pot”.

“ALBIS is committed to developing sustainable solutions and promoting the circular economy”, says Sylvain Rambour, Technical Manager at ALBIS France. “ECOTRIA^®, a copolyester containing rPET PCR and CirculenRenew^® PP containing bio-attributed renewable resources, are fully recyclable in standard recycling streams. Plastics are often the greenest choice for cosmetic packaging as they use less energy and water during their manufacture and processing, compared to alternatives such as glass and metal. Designing for RECYCLING and REFILLING make the advantages of plastics ever-more convincing for the circular economy”.