Sustainability and the COVID-19 pandemic both are playing roles in application development for plastic products.
Global packaging firm Greif Inc. is using more post-consumer resin in its plastic products, Gianluca Valente, senior procurement director, said Oct. 27 as part of the online Global Plastics Summit 2021.
Delaware, Ohio-based Greif sourced more than 16 million pounds of material by recycling its own plastic drums in 2020.
"The pandemic slowed down some sustainability, but interest is still high from our customers for more lightweighting and more PCR [post consumer resin] usage," Valente said. "The trend is clear, and we have to go in this direction."
Plastic-based intermediate bulk containers (IBCs) are Greif's fastest growing industrial packaging substrate, according to Valente, and the firm plans to increase capacity for those products. All IBCs made by Greif are recyclable, he said.