A gentle food-grade PET recycling formulation
Landmark Biotech has introduced LandClean, a new washing formulation for PET recycling that aims to reduce residue and limit the use of highly caustic cleaning systems.
Landmark Biotech is a chemical technology company based in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, and specialising in PET recycling and circular chemistry solutions. In launching LandClean, its new washing formulation, it asserted that the means to better performance, including less residue and the reduction or elimination of hazardous waste, is not more intensity but, rather, better chemistry. The company says that LandClean has been designed to offer an alternative, rethought approach to PET washing, based on efficiency in operation, rather than what it describes as “brute force”.
As global demand for recycled PET continues to rise, the washing stage has become central to the considerations of recyclers, brand owners and equipment suppliers. The challenge is to take increasingly difficult feedstock and convert it into material that consistently meets food-grade specifications and doing so without increasing chemical load, energy consumption or operational stress.
The traditional approach has been to use high-concentration caustic soda systems operating at elevated temperatures, often combined with heavy surfactants and long wash durations. While this method has helped establish PET recycling at scale, contemporary labels, pressure-sensitive adhesives, modern inks, shrink sleeves and multilayer structures create residues that are very difficult to remove, even under harsh washing conditions. While aggressive caustic-based systems work, they come with the disadvantages of equipment wear, wastewater challenges and variations in process stability.
Separation rather than abrasion
The new formulation uses a controlled alkaline environment paired with an advanced emulsifier and surfactant system to detach, dislodge, and disperse adhesives, inks and coatings. It promotes separation rather than preparation for abrasive cleaning by softening the contaminants. Landmark Biotech says that its process helps prevent re-deposition and promotes clearer, cleaner flake surfaces.
The company goes on to claim that this approach has several advantages, including reduced dependency on extreme caustic solutions; a more stable and predictable washing performance and lower stress on equipment and downstream treatment. The process is, in addition, claimed to produce flakes with better clarity and improved readiness for extrusion.
Integration into existing production lines
Landmark highlights that the new process and formulation can be integrated into existing washing lines, without the capital expense of retrofitting, which helps towards faster RoI, regardless of whether wash lines are operating in original condition or have already undergone upgrades.
Landmark says that a more balanced and controlled wash environment enables processors to improve control over factors like colour consistency, residue removal, surface friction and organics, all of which influence final pellet quality.
Food grade compliance
LandClean was developed specifically for recyclers working towards EFSA- and FDA-compliant food-grade output and has been tested in bottle-to-bottle contexts, where material safety and surface quality are essential.
LandClean represents a shift away from excessive caustic loading and toward an approach rooted in efficiency, stability and food-grade reliability, Landmark claims, and provides recyclers with a tool that supports circular economy goals, without creating additional operational burden.