Charter Next Generation, Revolution to bring PCR to food, flexible packaging markets

Charter Next Generation (CNG), Chicago, and Revolution Sustainable Solutions LLC, Little Rock, Arkansas, are partnering to drive market adoption of commercially available postconsumer recycled, linear low-density polyethylene (PCR-LLDPE) for food and flexible packaging applications. The companies say it marks a milestone for brands in search of solutions to incorporate postconsumer recycled content in food contact packaging.

“CNG is excited to partner with Revolution to bring food-grade LLDPE postconsumer resins to the market,” CNG Director of Corporate Sustainability Scott Hammer says. “Revolutions proprietary recycling process, combined with CNG’s expertise in developing films with postconsumer resins enables brands to transition to postconsumer recycled materials without sacrificing performance.”

Both companies are members of the U.S. Plastics Pact, a consortium launched as part of the Ellen MacArthur Foundation’s global Plastics Pact network, and Revolution and CNG say their offering fills a need for businesses that package, produce or sell food products to include PCR content in their flexible film food packaging with goals to reach 30-percent-recycled content by 2025.

CNG will offer Revolution’s Encore food-grade PCR-LLDPE resin for application in its film products, which include stand-up pouches, premade bags and roll stock applications for both vertical form fill and seal (VFFS) and horizontal form fill and seal (HFFS) packaging. Revolution says that CNG’s films, when produced with Revolution’s PCR resin, offer 40 percent or more recycled content without sacrificing performance.

Revolution introduced Encore to the market in 2022 after receiving a letter of no objection (LNO) in December 2021 from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The LNO allowed for Revolution’s proprietary recycling method to produce PCR-LLDPE for flexible films in food contact at content levels up to 100 percent for all food packaging types under nearly all conditions of use (B through H) as defined by the FDA. This performance allows packaging manufacturers to use PCR in applications from boiling water sterilized and temperature filled to refrigerator and freezer storage.

“We are proud to have developed a process to manufacture and offer high-grade PCR-LLDPE for customers committed to using recycled content in consumer packaging,” Revolution Vice President of Sustainable Materials Tammy Rucker says. “And our partnership with CNG is a significant step forward to narrow the gap in the demand for postconsumer recycled content in plastic packaging for food-contact applications.”