EPL Limited, formerly known as Essel Propack Limited, the world’s largest specialty packaging company, has received global recognition from the Association of Plastic Recyclers (APR), USA for its Platina Tube with an HDPE closure.
EPL’s Platina is the first fully sustainable and completely recyclable tube in the world, including shoulder and cap, to get this recognition. It is the only tube to have an integrated shoulder Inner Barrier Liner (IBL) that is also recyclable in the High-Density Polyethylene (HDPE) recycle stream. This is a big step forward as it allows the entire tube to be recycled in a single recycle stream
APR maintains exacting standards for certification. Platina went through a rigorous test and qualification process for more than three months before the results were announced. Platina is an eco-friendly laminated tube produced with less than 5% barrier resin, and has earlier received recognition from the APR, USA, for consistently meeting or exceeding the most stringent APR HDPE Critical Guidance criteria.
After use, the Platina tubes and caps can be recycled in the dominant #2 plastic stream used across the globe for recycling milk cans and juice bottles, among others. Use of HDPE in Platina and GML tubes increases the stiffness of the tubes, enabling EPL to reduce polymer content and in turn help users to deliver on their sustainability commitments.
The Platina range of HDPE tubes are designed to deliver source reduction and recyclability without the loss of any barrier properties. This allows for sustained product stability and durable shelf life of the packed content. Platina tube is especially suited for oral, toiletries, and food brands. Platina tubes and caps were also certified as 100% recyclable by RecyClass European certification for ‘Code 2’ (recycling) earlier, making them the only speciality packaging tubes and caps to be recognized as 100% recyclable, globally.
Talking about sustainability, Sudhanshu Vats, MD & CEO, EPL, said, “Sustainability is a key area of focus for us and we constantly endeavour towards achieving it. We are extremely delighted to receive this recognition from APR, and this will motivate us to develop more innovative and sustainable solutions and consciously reduce our carbon footprint. This showcases our strong R&D capabilities, underlining EPL’s global position as one of the world’s leading innovative packaging manufacturers with the highest standards of sustainability, resource efficiency and recycling/reuse (PCR).We will encourage and enable our customers to convert to this packaging format; helping them to meet their sustainability commitments faster.”
Speaking about this achievement, Hariharan K. Nair, Vice-President, Creativity and Innovation, said “This is a big achievement for us at EPL. Sustainable solutions is a key focus area for us and we are striving towards achieving this objective across product lines. A first-in-the-world tag makes us proud and is a testament to our disciplined and creative work ethic. Recycling helps the environment and even as it creates new economic opportunities, as recycled products can be made into new goods. Recycling helps still-useful materials prevent clogging up landfills and helps reduce fossil fuel consumption.”
EPL is the world’s largest specialty packaging company, manufacturing laminated plastic tubes catering to the FMCG and pharma spaces. Employing 3158 people from 25 nationalities, EPL operates through twenty state-of-the-art facilities in eleven countries, selling about 8 billion tubes per annum.
With a market-leading Oral Care volume share of 36% globally, EPL has units operating across the USA, Mexico, Colombia, Poland, Germany, Egypt, Russia, China, Philippines and India. These facilities cater to 5 core categories of Oral Care, Beauty & Cosmetics, Pharma & Health, Food & Nutrition, and Home Care; offering customized solutions through constant innovations in materials, technology, design and processes.