Through this development, Scholle IPN is helping its customers take the next step in their sustainability journeys. With the implementation of a tethered fitment, consumers and producers alike no longer need to worry that the cap will be lost – instead, it will be recycled along with the package. This new line of fitments also complies with the EU's Single-Use Plastics Directive.
Ross Bushnell, President and CEO of Scholle IPN, stated that "the team at Scholle IPN is singularly focused on the sustainable package design for liquid flexible packaging. We approach each project with a goal of removing waste and excessive source material in everything we produce." Bushnell continued, "Doing more with less is core to who we are."
Tony Bloedt, Director of Global Fitment Development spoke about the process behind the line of tethered fitment solutions, "Scholle IPN has been a pioneer in flexible packaging throughout its entire history, and this is no different. Not only were we looking to design fitments that were compliant with EU regulations, but we also wanted to ensure that these fitments were designed in a way that decreased our impact on the environment throughout the product's entire lifecycle. With our new tethered fitment technology, consumers can enjoy a more accessible, more ergonomic experience, while CPG companies take another step towards a truly circular future."
Scholle IPN's tethered cap solutions eliminate loose components that might otherwise not be placed into the recycling stream, while offering child-safe designs and improved ergonomics. This new line of fitments falls into two different product families: LinkCap™ and FlipCap™, and are suitable for pre-made, hybrid, and horizontal form-fill-seal applications in ambient, hot-fill, or retort processes.