European companies collaborate to develop home compostable shrink sleeves based on PLA
On September 19, CARBIOS announced that it has joined forces with SLEEVER to sign an exclusive long-term contract to jointly develop and bring to market the first home-compostable unidirectional transverse shrink film.
The collaboration includes a supply agreement for CARBIOS Active, an enzyme solution for PLA (polylactic acid) biodegradation developed by CARBIOS.CARBIOS Active is directly integrated into the production process, making these PLA-rich films home-compostable while ensuring the production of high-quality compost. These films can be used in a variety of applications such as labels, wraps and fixed packaging, suitable for luxury and mass retail markets, providing eco-design solutions for packaging without dedicated value chains.
SLEEVER Group is a global, French family-owned company specializing in shrink sleeve packaging and the world's first generation of shrink sleeve developers. For half a century, SLEEVER has been deeply engaged in the single segment of sleeves with the spirit of craftsmanship and has the full supply chain capabilities of shrink sleeves. There are 14 production plants, 18 sales offices and 10 partner offices around the world. The company's main businesses include film R&D and production, sleeve label printing and production, sleeve label equipment production and manufacturing, and bottle sleeve services. Its products cover many fields such as beauty, personal care, household cleaning, medicine, high-end wine, food and beverage, etc.
CARBIOS Active is a unique innovative technology that is directly integrated into the film production stage, allowing polylactic acid-rich packaging to be composted at room temperature, thereby improving its life cycle. CARBIOS Active is an encapsulated enzyme that creates a new generation of biopolymer products that can be composted at room temperature regardless of soil conditions, while ensuring compost quality and being free of toxicity and microplastics. CARBIOS headquarters in Clermont-Ferrand, France, has established and operated a production line that can produce 2,500 tons of CARBIOS Active per year (equivalent to 50,000 tons of enzymatic polylactic acid per year).
A shrink sleeve is a thin film label printed on a plastic film or plastic tube. During the labeling process, when the temperature rises, the shrink sleeve will quickly shrink along the outer contour of the container, clinging to the surface of the container and eventually becoming the same shape as the product. It can provide 360° printing effects, provide more display space for product information, realize tamper-proof function, and ultimately can fit tightly with any complex shape of products.
