Elk Grove Village, IL – As momentum for the green packaging movement advances, Clear Lam Packaging, Inc. is proud to announce a major advancement with the development of the new, renewable packaging for America’s leading pretzel brand, Snyder’s of Hanover. The new bag created for the Snyder’s of Hanover organic product line uses renewable raw materials that are 90 percent plant-based, part of Clear Lam’s Project EarthClear packaging initiatives.
During a year of research and development, Clear Lam replaced conventional petroleum-based plastics with a unique material derived primarily from renewable Ingeo PLA (polylactic acid). When compared to traditional petroleum-based packaging, the renewable raw materials are produced with as little as half the energy and generate as little as 52 percent fewer greenhouse gas emissions in the manufacturing process.
“We’re pleased to bring this technological breakthrough to our customers in order to support global sustainability initiatives,” said James Sanfilippo, President and CEO of Clear Lam Packaging, Inc. “This is a major milestone and another important step in our effort to provide meaningful packaging solutions that are better for the environment.”
A key engineering challenge faced by Clear Lam was finding a way to maintain similar performance characteristics to traditional petroleum-based packaging materials. Clear Lam derived a way to produce the new plant-based packaging with the appropriate properties to make the bags act and feel like conventional bags.
“Our launch of this new renewable plant-based packaging is just the latest example of our company’s commitment to utilizing products and practices that minimize negative effects on the environment,” said Claude O’Connor, Vice President of Marketing at Snyder’s of Hanover. Snyder’s organic pretzel product line includes
8 Grains & Seeds, Whole Wheat & Oat and Honey Whole Wheat. A new line of Gluten-Free Pretzel Sticks will be launching soon.
A bright yellow graphic on the upper right corner of the package helps differentiate the bag on the shelf and directs consumers to the back panel for more information on the benefits of the renewable packaging.
Clear Lam produced the new package from a film derived from plants not oil. To create the appropriate oxygen and moisture barrier properties to help in protecting the freshness of the product, the film was laminated to another plant-based plastic layer that incorporates a thin metalized layer. The materials are made mostly from Ingeo PLA produced by NatureWorks LLC.
The Clear Lam renewable films are part of the company’s Project EarthClear initiatives that include the use of renewable raw materials not oil, the use of recycled content whenever possible and the use of new and innovative lightweighting technologies.
Source: Clear Lam Packaging