As the value chain increasingly demands enhanced recyclability and lower carbon footprints, suppliers have been tasked with developing materials that meet sustainable goals – without sacrificing performance. There has been notable consumer demand for sustainable solutions, which has large brands pushing for sustainable solutions and 2030 goals and beyond.

“Brand focus on sustainability is driven by investors and the potential for regulation on sustainability disclosure,” states Matt Wilkinson, Sustainability and Circularity Technical Manager, Avery Dennison. “As a result, converters are also seeing this. Converters are now being asked more frequently to support these requests for sustainability disclosure, data, and transparency on their sustainability practices.”

This trend is not slowing down, either. The focus on climate change, sustainability, and emissions will only continue to intensify.

“As brands look for ways to meet their emissions targets and the recent wave of carbon-neutral targets, they will want to better understand their product’s carbon footprint and supply chain,” remarks Wilkinson. “There is an opportunity to utilize technology to better track and trace products from manufacturing all the way to consumers and through end-of-life.”

Avery Dennison has responded with a wide range of sustainable substrates. The company recently announced its metallized films with AD CleanFlake technology have been recognized by the Association of Plastic Recyclers (APR) for HDPE and PET recycling.

“We are the first to be recognized for offering a portfolio of metallized label solutions capable of working with the recycling systems to enable rigid plastic recycling,” says Wilkinson. “Avery Dennison is also the first to offer AD CleanFlake Technology on all film labels, enabling and advancing rigid plastic recycling. Regardless of application, AD CleanFlake Technology offers excellent performance on all types of packaging — making sustainability the easy choice.”

Earlier this year, Avery Dennison introduced three new facestocks to its Wine and Spirits  Collection. All are 30% Post-Consumer Waste (PCW) versions of classic facestocks, including Estate 8, Bright White Felt and Estate 17 Martele. The company has also continued to grow its Direct Thermal Linerless portfolio of products. E

“liminating the liner on Direct Thermal blanks allows customers to get up to 50% more labels per roll,” states Wilkinson. “This leads to fewer roll changes, speeding operations and improving warehouse utilization. The Avery Dennison blank linerless labeling solutions offer productivity, sustainability, and safety benefits.”

There are numerous hurdles suppliers must overcome when developing their newest substrates, especially when sustainability is a prerequisite. “Price is a large hurdle when it comes to proving sustainable solutions and reducing carbon footprint,” explains Wilkinson. “PCR and bio-based resins are in demand, and that demand will continue to grow as more state regulations start to come online in 2025. States like California, New Jersey, and Washington are already requiring beverage companies to include 15% PCR in their plastic containers. This increase in demand can be felt in PCR resin pricing versus their virgin grade counterparts.”

Additionally, other challenges involve the unique nature of modern packaging. The diversity in packaging is an obstacle, as not all packaging types can be recycled using the same processes. Recycling infrastructure capability varies from region to region.

“In addition to that, the economics of recycling and regulation also vary,” says Wilkinson. “Recyclability will be impacted by all of these components, making it difficult to scale up solutions. Beyond this, there is also a strong need for education on the complexity of recycling, both within the industry and with end consumers. This ties into another challenge we face, which is the limited supply of recycled content for use as input materials into the products.

“Avery Dennison is committed to helping converters and brands reach their carbon reduction goals,” he adds. “We offer a footprinting tool to help customers see the impact of the label product and compare to find alternatives that can help them reach their goals.”

For brands, converters, and consumers alike, recyclability will remain a hot topic. According to Wilkinson, currently, four extended producer responsibility (EPR) bills have passed in the US, two have passed needs-assessment bills and another nine states have introduced EPR legislation for packaging.

“Any organization selling or shipping products to multiple states must adopt the approaches that align with these new regulations,” he says. “Avery Dennison is committed to helping converters evaluate their labels and see how they can meet regulations and goals.”