Bremnes Seashore to use packaging made from BASF chemical recycled feedstock

Bremnes Seashore has announced that its BÖMLO salmon will be packaged from BASF Chemical's recycled Styropor Ccycled plastic, which the company says is the same as conventional expandable polystyrene (EPS) boxes
.

This new packaging is the result of a collaboration between Bremnes Seashore, BASF and plastics converter and recycler VARTDAL PLAST to improve the sustainability of traditional EPS fish boxes
.

Simon Nesse Økland, Head of Development at Bremnes Seashore, explained: “EPS fish boxes are our renowned and trusted partner with excellent properties for maintaining and securing the cold chain during transport
.
A secure cold chain is essential for food safety and prevention of food Waste is critical
.
"

BASF claims that its Styropor Ccylced has the same properties as conventional Styropor, will maintain important properties such as thermal insulation and compression resistance, has good flexural stiffness and stacking stability, and is used to replace fossil materials
.
This is said to be crucial to keeping the fish cool and fresh
.

Using BASF's chemical recycling process, pyrolysis oil is derived from the thermochemical process of pyrolysis, which converts post-consumer plastic waste into secondary raw materials that would otherwise be used for energy recovery or landfilled
.

BASF added that pyrolysis oil is mixed with fossil feedstock during production and the recycled portion of Styropor Ccycled is distributed using the mass balance method
.
The dispensing process and the product itself have apparently been certified by an independent auditor, while a life cycle assessment shows that the Styropor Ccycled saves at least 50% CO2 during production compared to a conventional Styropor
.

According to BASF, Styropor Ccycled creates virgin quality plastic and is certified for food contact
.

Klaus Ries, Head of BASF's European Styrene Business, commented: "The chemical recycling of plastic waste is not only an important cornerstone for achieving European circular economy goals, but also for protective packaging, medical boxes and food packaging that require high material quality and safety.
Apps are particularly useful
.
"

Circularity and recycling innovations are increasingly important to the styrene value chain as it is required to meet EU recycling content targets
.

Plastic converter VARTDAL PLAST uses Styropor Ccycled to manufacture EPS fish boxes, which are said to contain 100% recycled materials under the ecoloop certification scheme
.

Jan Endre Vartdal, owner and CEO of VARTDAL PLAST, said: "Our goal is to convert our entire production from fossil-based feedstocks to fossil-free or recyclable feedstocks
.
Using BASF's Styropor Ccycled feedstocks allows us to Working closely with the customer to start this transition without compromising quality and recyclability
.
”

The companies added that EPS fish boxes are currently recyclable and widely available in Scandinavia, a major market for Bremnes Seashore
.
According to the two companies, the fish boxes are collected, compacted and shredded, and then used as a feedstock to produce recycled polystyrene for various uses, such as insulation boards
.

Vartdal added: “As a plastics producer, we have a responsibility to contribute to getting our products back into the cycle
.
To do this, we have built two high-capacity compression stations in central and eastern Norway
.
By taking advantage of backhaul transport , our own trucks collect and transport EPS from waste disposal sites, fish processing plants, and building and construction centers back to our compaction site, where EPS is shredded, compacted and palletized ready for recycling
.
Our long-term The goal is to bring the compacted material back into our product range, VARTDAL LOOP, which only includes products made from recycled or fossil-free raw materials
.
”

The new EPS fish boxes for BÖMLO salmon fillets from Bremnes Seashore will be available in Norway by Christmas 2021
.