The widespread use of packaging made from plastics is due to a number of success factors such as lightness, strength, versatility, cost-effectiveness and customisation.
Thanks to its hygienic properties and its tasteless, odourless and colourless substance, plastics can be found in almost all packaging in the food sector. Plastic boxes and pallets are also widely used in logistics and transport.
But the success of plastics has led to a throwaway culture that reveals the downside of this material: today, single-use plastics account for 40% of all plastics produced each year.
"a large part of the planet is swimming in discarded plastic, which is damaging the health of animals and probably, human health too".
National Geographic
STOPPING PLASTIC POLLUTION IS A PRIORITY THAT CAN NO LONGER BE POSTPONED, BUT IMAGINING A FUTURE WITHOUT IT IS EQUALLY UTOPIAN
Solving the problem of environmental pollution by plastics, requires a widespread environmental awareness, practicality and pragmatism, and last but not least the development of a comprehensive strategy based on two axioms:
- REDUCE THE AMOUNT OF “NEW PLASTIC” INTRODUCED INTO THE ENVIRONMENT
- TO CLEAN UP THE ENVIRONMENT OF ABANDONED PLASTICS AND RETURN THEM TO THE RECYCLING INDUSTRY
1. REDUCE THE AMOUNT OF “NEW PLASTIC” INTRODUCED INTO THE ENVIRONMENT
THE PLASTIC RECYCLING INDUSTRY AND THE CIRCULAR ECONOMY
Plastic production has increased exponentially over the last 15 years, from 2.3 million tonnes in 1950 to 448 million tonnes in 2015. Reducing the amount of "new plastic" introduced into the environment will be one of the future challenges facing progress.
Leveraging the reduction of production is unlikely, so the most concrete hypothesis seems to be that of a circular economy capable of using plastics for multiple production cycles.
The plastic worldwide recycling industry has developed exponentially over the last ten years. Italy continues to grow in plastic recycling and in 2017 managed to send 43.4% of collected packaging into the recycling chain, ranking third in Europe after Germany and Spain.
The virtuous growth of the recycling industry is complemented by moulding processes and technologies that are increasingly capable of producing recycled plastic products with performances that match those of similar virgin plastic products.
We assume that within a short time, most plastic products can be made of recycled materials and this could be one of the factors that could most significantly contribute to the reduction of plastic material in the environment.
2. TO CLEAN UP THE ENVIRONMENT OF ABANDONED PLASTICS AND RETURN THEM TO THE RECYCLING INDUSTRY
Every year around 8 million tonnes of plastic waste ends up in the oceans from coastal nations. That's the equivalent of dumping five bags of rubbish for every 30 centimetres of coastline worldwide.
The Pacific Trash Vortex, also known as the Great Pacific Garbage Patch or simply Plastic Island, is a huge floating accumulation of rubbish located in the Pacific Ocean, an area larger than the surface of the United States. A dramatic situation that needs to be reversed.
In order to "clean up" the world from plastic, several associations have been set up in recent years and various initiatives have been undertaken to raise awareness and involve citizens in the clean-up of beaches, lakes and rivers.
In 2009, a virtuous project called Kaisei "Ocean Planet", coordinated by the San Francisco-based Ocean Voyages Institute (Ovi), began organising what has been called "the largest ocean clean-up in history". This summer, 103 tonnes of rubbish were collected in just 48 days and placed in various recycling centres.
Large global brands have linked up with this and other similar initiatives to develop products made from plastics collected from the environment. Adidas, FIAT, P&G, Prada, Ferrero are just some of the brands that have associated their Corporate Social Responsibility with recycled plastic.
KUBOOX'S CONTRIBUTION TO THE PRODUCTION OF RECYCLED PLASTIC PACKAGING
KUBOOX has developed in collaboration with its subsidiary
MPS Plastic a production line specialising in research, development and production of
regenerated PP with dedicated injection moulding technologies (
Injection moulding with recycled plastic. MPS presents the production line).
From these production lines we produce around 350K recycled plastic pallets and boxes per year, which serve global brands.
List of our ecological recycled plastic pallets: