Development and demonstration of best practices to design and produce sustainable commercial bags

PROJECT DESCRIPTION

BACKGROUND

In 2009, the EU produced over 3.25 billion tonnes of plastic sacks and bags. In Spain, where this project was based, some 13.5 billion commercial plastic bags are made every year. Plastic bag production has a high environmental impact, the main issues being:

use of non-renewable materials in manufacture;

the emission of harmful volatile organic compounds (VOCs) during the printing process; and

management of waste bags after use.

The common production method is to use polymers derived from petroleum, especially high-density polyethylene (HDPE). The subsequent printing process typically involves flexography or gravure technology, both of which require solvent-based inks and varnishes.

The industry recognises that in order to meet the challenges of a series of European directives – including on waste (2008/98/EC), VOC solvents emissions (1999/13/EC) and industrial emissions (2010/75/EU) - a better understanding is needed of everything involved in the lifecycle of the bags, from production of raw materials, transport and printing, to end-of-life.

OBJECTIVES

The 'ECOFLEXOBAG' project set out to reduce the negative environmental impact of commercial plastic bags during their entire lifecycle. Its main objective was to develop and demonstrate an innovative methodology that will help manufacturers – particularly small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) – to design and produce environmentally-sustainable bags.

This would involve identifying and establishing best practices for design and production together with systems for monitoring these processes. These identified best practices would be adapted to an online tool that provides bag manufacturers with the information necessary to implement them in the most effective way.

The project had the following specific objectives:

to prevent or reduce current adverse environmental impacts from the generation and management of plastic bag waste;

to reduce the overall impact of resource use and to improve the efficiency of such use;

to prevent or reduce the direct and indirect effects of VOCs being emitted into the environment during the manufacturing process;

to increase the eco-innovation of SMEs in line with the principles of the Environmental Compliance Assistance Programme for SMEs (ECAP) while taking their competitiveness into account; and

to help SMEs to comply with EU policy on sustainable consumption and production.

RESULTS

The ECOFLEXOBAG project developed guidelines for companies that manufacture and print plastic bags using flexographic printing. These were tested and validated by bag manufacturers in Czechia, Spain, Netherlands, Finland, and the United Kingdom. The project produced best practices for designing commercial plastic bags, for implementing best available techniques (BATs) with sustainable substrates, and for monitoring the sustainable production of bags.

The project’s outcomes included a guide to systematically applying ecodesign principles to reduce the environmental impact of plastic bags throughout their lifecycle, so aiding compliance with environmental legislation.

A guide to sustainable production included advice on raw materials, sustainable printing, and improving waste management and water and energy use efficiency.

The project's guide to monitoring environmental and resource-efficiency key performance indicators showed plastic bag manufacturers how to analyse consumption of substrates, inks, varnishes, solvents, water and energy. It gave them practical advice on how to increase consumption of recycled materials, and sustainable inks and substrates. And it also advised them on the steps needed to set up a solvent management plan to monitor harmful volatile organic compounds (VOCs) emissions, as well as how to conduct quality and cost assessments.

ECOFLEXOBAG’s online e-tool enabled plastic bag manufacturers to implement best practices and to conduct a simplified lifecycle analysis of their procedures.

In terms of long-term socio-economic benefits, the project’s guidelines will help SMEs to enhance their high-quality products, reduce costs, and build stronger customer relationships. Suppliers will benefit from the production of flexible packaging, while consumers will have the option of choosing more sustainable packaging. Companies can benefit economically through improved products and services. They will thus play an important role in the successful implementation of the EU 2020 Strategy, through job creation and economic recovery. Furthermore, Health and Safety conditions will be improved due to the reduction of solvent use during bag manufacturing.

Environmental benefits will depend on the companies using the guidelines and e-tool, so ongoing dissemination and technical support are crucial for achieving long-term benefits. The main potential environmental benefits will be the replacement of at least 50% of non-biodegradable bags by reusable and/or biodegradable bags; a reduction of VOCs emissions in the printing process (potentially up to about 95%); and improvements (≥ 10%) in at least five key performance indicators.

Data from the project trials, involving nine companies in five European countries, showed improvements in the use of best practices for designing plastic bags, and the implementation of BATs for sustainable printing (substitution of solvent-based inks by water-based ink).

The project therefore contributed to the implementation of EU directives on waste (2008/98/EC); packaging and packaging waste (94/62/EC) and the amendment to reduce the consumption of lightweight plastic carrier bags; and on VOCs emissions (1999/13/EC).

Further information on the project can be found in the project's layman report (see "Read more" section).