MATERIALS / RECYCLING PETplanet Insider Vol. 26 No. 03/25 www.petpla.net 15 Detailed studies The study considered a range of PET bottles of different sizes and for different purposes and compared them with packages made of aluminium, steel and glass. The PET bottles were from 250ml to 2l; water bottles of 500ml and 1,500ml were studied; soft drink bottles of 250, 600 and 2,000ml; and 900ml edible oil containers. Aluminium cans of 350ml, for water and soft drinks; 900ml steel edible oil cans; and glass bottles of 300ml (for water) and 250 ml (for soft drinks) were the specific items analysed. The PET value chain Whether produced in Brazil itself or imported from overseas, PET’s ultimate raw material is oil and petroleum products. It can be noted that the proportion of recycled PET being used in food and beverage is growing: 56.4% of postconsumer PET packaging is recycled in Brazil. The industry is driving efforts to use recycled materials. Bottle-to-bottle processing is prevalent in the Brazilian beverage industry. PET and HDPE resins are manufactured in chemical plants, from where they pass to processors who turn the material into bottle preforms, labels and caps. After being formed into bottles and filled, they are sent to market and then, after use, disposed of or collected and recycled. Every stage is taken into account, including transportation. Aluminium can value chain Aluminium cans are overwhelmingly produced from recycled aluminium cans – an established example of a circular economy. Energy costs for processing, casting and lamination are not much different between recycled and mined materials but the cost, energy and pollution involved in mining bauxite is significant. Like PET, aluminium undergoes filling, transportation, retail, final use and then disposal or, in the majority of cases, collection and recycling. Glass bottle value chain Glass is made out of recovered post-consumer and other glass, along with silica (sand); sodium hydroxide/ caustic soda, or lye; limestone and felspar. Production is the most energyintensive of all, requiring high levels of heat. There is no difference in energy consumption between glass made of recycled material and that made from virgin material. After bottling and retail, glass bottles are recycled or disposed of. Steel packaging value chain Steel is less widely used in food packaging than PET, glass or aluminium. Its chief use today is for larger containers of edible oils. Some raw material is recovered scrap but mining, of iron and tin, continues to play a big role in steel production. Primary and recycled steel, and metallic tin, are produced in separate facilities and brought together in the casting and laminating stage. Bottlers and fillers may have steel and PET containers under the same factory roof, going down parallel lines. Steel cans go through the same distribution, usage and disposal/collection process. Comparisons and findings Water bottles: 500ml and 1,500ml PET containers were compared with 350ml aluminium cans and 300ml disposable glass bottles. The 1,500ml PET bottle was the leading performer across almost all headings. The report says that this is because of the correlation between the mass of the package itself and volume of the transported product. Its total CO2 equivalent emissions were found to be 45% lower than the 350ml aluminium can and 94% lower than the 350ml glass bottle. Its total contribution to acidification was reported as 69% less than aluminium and 98% less than glass.
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