SoilWrap Wins Greener Package Award

WEST CHICAGO, IL – Ball Innovations, a business unit of Ball Horticultural Company, has won a Greener Package Award for SoilWrap®, a bio-based, compostable plant container. The Greener Package Awards competition is sponsored by Summit Publishing’s GreenerPackage.com, and recognizes innovations in five categories that significantly reduce packaging’s environmental footprint.

“SoilWrap has been in development for several years and is the result of breakthrough design and materials,” says Bill Doeckel, General Manager of Ball Innovations. “Winning the Greener Package award bestows considerable third-party credibility and prestige for green packaging innovation.”

SoilWrap is the only certified, soil-degradable packaging material in the industry. It was designed by Greg Trabka, Sustainable Horticulture Specialist with Ball Innovations. The bottomless pot design – winner in the Non-Food Primary Packaging category – depends on the use of Mirel polyhydroxyalkanoate (PHA) sugar-based resins.

Plantable and printable SoilWrap addresses the massive landfill waste associated with horticultural plastic. It also saves time during transplanting by approximately 30% as you do not need to remove the plant from the pot, and there are no pots to clean up after planting. Additionally, SoilWrap reduces transplant shock and loss due to breakage during transplanting.

A total of eight winners were selected by members of the Greener Package Expert Network. According to award organizers, this year’s recipients “demonstrate that sustainability can be found in myriad technologies.”

Ball Innovations will receive its Greener Package Award and be recognized during The Showcase of Packaging Innovations® at Pack Expo International, one of the largest packaging shows in the world, October 31 to November 3, in Chicago.

For more information about Ball Innovations’ sustainable solutions and bio-packaging offerings, visit www.BallHort.com/Sustainable.

Ball Horticultural Company is an internationally renowned breeder, producer and wholesale distributor of ornamental plants. A family-owned business since it was founded in 1905, Ball has introduced many innovative, award-winning varieties to the world of horticulture, including the Wave® petunia family and Super Elfin® impatiens. Ball is committed to sustainable practices and has highlighted its green accomplishments in its “Sustainability Report.” The company has worldwide production, sales and marketing through its many subsidiaries on six continents. For further information, log on to ballhort.com.

Source: Ball Horticultural Company