As part of her Bachelor's thesis in Environmental Engineering at the ZHAW, Lea Schneider is investigating the recyclability and life cycle assessment of food packaging.
Problem definition
The substitution of plastic packaging with paper, cardboard or other fiber packaging (fiber-based packaging) in the food sector is a trend. Packaging should be recyclable, as resource-efficient and environmentally friendly as possible while at the same time protecting the contents. The idea is that it will then be recycled in the existing large-scale recycling structures for paper and cardboard. However, the theoretical and actual recyclability of fiber-based packaging are very different. Fiber-based composite packaging is particularly problematic. Technically, recycling cannot be carried out as standard. Feeding fiber-based composite packaging into the paper or cardboard collection leads to contamination of the collection streams, which ultimately leads to a decrease in recyclate quality.
Research questions
- Which food packaging has the highest recyclability?
- Which food packaging has the lowest environmental impact?
- To what extent does the overall result change as a result of the subsequent tipping point analysis of the food waste rate?
Methodology
The aim of this work is to evaluate food packaging in terms of its recyclability and subsequently its life cycle assessment. This is done for Switzerland at the present time (Scenario I) and on the basis of a future scenario (Scenario II) following the expansion of the nationwide collection and recycling infrastructure. In addition, a tipping point analysis of the food waste rate will be carried out as part of the work. This is because packaging that is modified in order to minimize food waste can reduce the overall environmental impact of food. This is equally true if the environmental impact of the packaging itself has to be increased.
Findings
The work was completed at the beginning of July. It will be published by the ZHAW. If you have any questions about the publication, please contact Lea Schneider.
Contact person
Lea Schneider(lea.schneider@realcycle.ch, +41 44 537 82 84)