Sustainability is not just a buzzword in the label and package printing industry. Not only are these environmental initiatives beneficial for the planet, but there are some significant cost benefits associated with using sustainable materials.

As more brands and converters strive to meet sustainability goals, suppliers and manufacturers are tasked with engineering new products to meet that demand.

To illustrate the steps it is taking, Avery Dennison has just announced sustainability goals for 2030, which are designed to exist alongside the company’s 2025 targets. While these goals represent a test, they are critical to promote the future success of Avery Dennison and the environment.

“Our 2030 sustainability goals were developed based on careful analysis of what is most important for our business and stakeholders, covering the areas where we can – and should – make the greatest difference for the environment,” explains Louise Sullivan, director of sustainability and innovation, Avery Dennison Label and Packaging Materials. “These goals also align with seven of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). A framework adopted by 193 countries, the SDGs have become a common standard for governments, the private sector and civil society to track progress toward sustainability.

“At Avery Dennison, one of our main sustainability goals is to deliver innovations that advance the circular economy,” adds Sullivan. “These innovations satisfy the recycling, composting or reuse requirements of all single-use consumer packaging and apparel with our products and solutions.”

Pressure sensitive labels can utilize materials that are recycled, create less waste or enable recycling. Avery Dennison’s latest product launches have been designed with these sustainability goals in mind. For example, the company just unveiled an rPET liner for film and semi-gloss paper facestocks, with a liner that is made from more than 30% post-consumer waste.

“The first of its kind in North America, this product delivers the same converting and dispensing performance as traditional liners and reduces the need to use new resources,” says Sullivan. “It also lessens the amount of water, energy, fossil materials and greenhouse gases used in the manufacturing process.”

Sustainability is starting to manifest itself in the items we see at the store every day. According to Sullivan, products such as produce or bakery – often offered in clamshells or trays with lids – can now take advantage of heat-resealable reclosure systems. Using a peel-seal film “welded” to trays, the new system optimizes shelf life and content freshness while providing a strong seal that enhances the user experience. The flat film seal also provides tremendous branding opportunities. 

Pressure sensitive labels can also enhance a PET container’s recyclability. These containers boast a better chance of being recycled into food grade rPET, fully capitalizing on the renewable energy of a PET bottle. When it comes to liners, some applications can take advantage of a new technology that eliminates the liner altogether, employing a thin release facestock coating that prevents the adhesive from sticking to the layer beneath. This reduces the amount of material used and translates to labor savings for the converter. “No liner means thinner label rolls, and that means savings in fuel, shipping and storage space,” says Sullivan.

Avery Dennison’s breadth of portfolios address these trends. CleanFlake technology enables pressure-sensitive label materials to cleanly separate from PET containers during the recycling process, leaving no adhesive residue on the PET flake. The resulting clean PET flakes significantly improve the rPET yield in the recycling process.

Meanwhile, Avery Dennison developed a new adhesive that is compatible with the existing recycling stream to help improve the recyclability of paper packaging. “Our new TrueCut All-Temp Adhesive Technology, or AT2550, is purpose-built for paper facestocks and specially designed for shipping, weigh scale and warehouse and logistics applications,” states Sullivan. “AT2550 is also repulpable. This means the adhesive is fully recyclable and products labeled with this platform can go back into the paper recycled waste stream. AT2550 not only reduces stickies, but also meets the testing criteria of the TLMI Recycling Compatible Adhesive LRP-2 Lab Test Protocol.”

The Avery Dennison Clear and white BOPP, MDO and PE film portfolios have also been recognized to comply with the Association of Plastic Recyclers (APR) Critical Guidance Protocol for High-Density Polyethylene (HDPE) plastic recycling. “The portfolio is the first to pass testing and we are committed to expanding the portfolio of materials with pressure sensitive emulsion acrylic adhesives that meet the APR HDPE Critical Guidance moving forward,” says Sullivan. “This recognition gives brands in the personal care and beauty space, as well as other segments that use Avery Dennison films on HDPE plastics, validation that the labels stay with the container without impacting the recycling process.”

In the future, 100% of Avery Dennison’s core film and paper product categories will contain recycled or renewable content. All of its regions will have labels that enable circularity of plastics, and there will be continued investment and industry collaboration to provide the industry with recycling outlets globally. Last October, the company announced a scalable matrix recycling program with RoadRunner Recycling to help label converters achieve their zero waste-to-landfill goals.

Plus, the adhesive and substrate supplier will also expand the adoption of intelligent labeling to enable the communication of data while reducing costs and waste, and creating smarter recycling processes.
“RFID and Digital ID solutions can be powerful tools to help consumer brands, retailers and industrial companies to operate more sustainably,” comments Sullivan. “By offering greater visibility into supply chains and inventories, they help to avoid overproduction, reduce waste, enable better recycling and ultimately increase profitability.”

It's important to note, too, that increasing a product’s sustainability profile does not diminish its performance, both in a converter setting or with consumers at the shelf.

“Our sustainable products offer the same great advantages of pressure sensitive labels while offering brands improved sustainability benefits,” adds Sullivan. “Pressure sensitive labels can help enhance a brand by offering no limits to design or color, ability to work with many different finishes, they work on any bottle or package and offer a premium look all while maintaining performance.”