‘Unisojai’ Spotlighted as the Solution to the Surging Recycling Waste Problem

Unisomaterial Transforming Complex Textures into a Single Material
Spotlighted as a Solution to the Surge in Recycling Resources Due to COVID-19

The prolonged COVID-19 pandemic has caused the world to struggle with an explosive increase in waste. Governments of various countries, including South Korea, the United States, China, and Japan, are implementing environmental policies to increase recycling rates. Photo by Asia Economy DB

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Heeyoon] The prolonged COVID-19 pandemic has caused the world to struggle with an explosive increase in waste. Governments worldwide, including those of the United States, China, and Japan, are implementing environmental policies to increase recycling rates. Recently, the European Union announced that it will strengthen environmental regulations to ensure that all plastic packaging is recycled or reused by 2030.

In response to global environmental issues, domestic and international companies are dedicating themselves to developing eco-friendly technologies. In particular, the ‘Uni-material’ approach, which considers reuse and recycling from the product design and production stages by unifying the material of the product, is gaining attention. Products applying Uni-material can solve waste problems and reduce production processes and costs, making it a new solution for environmental protection. Especially, Uni-material is increasingly growing in the packaging industry. According to Smithers Pira Research, a U.S. market research firm, the Uni-material market is expected to grow by 3.8% annually and reach $71 billion (approximately 71 trillion KRW) by 2025.

Accordingly, domestic and international companies are actively adopting Uni-material to protect the global environment and continue efforts to realize a sustainable circular economy.

Packaging material with 'GB-8' applied by SR Technopack (left) and packaging material coated with aluminum foil. Photo by SR Technopack

SR Technopack Applies Eco-Friendly Oxygen Barrier Coating Technology ‘GB-8’... Uni-material Reborn

Eco-friendly packaging material specialist SR Technopack (CEO Cho Hongro) has reborn RTD (Ready To Drink) cup containers as Uni-material by applying the eco-friendly oxygen barrier coating technology ‘GB-8’.

Existing convenience store RTD cup containers used aluminum foil attached to labels to enhance content preservation and oxygen barrier properties. In this case, due to the large difference in melting points between plastic and aluminum, and the difficulty for consumers to separate and dispose of them, they were classified as ‘Other (composite materials)’ rather than recycled and treated as waste.

GB-8, developed by SR Technopack, is made in a solution form and, when coated on materials requiring oxygen barriers, can itself create a high barrier material. Labels applied with GB-8 are classified as the same material (PP) as the plastic cup container raw material (PP) in recycling analysis tests, reducing the burden on consumers to separate and dispose of them separately.

The GB-8 technology has been recognized for its excellent oxygen barrier performance and eco-friendliness, winning the WorldStar Packaging Award from the globally prestigious WPO (World Packaging Organization). It has also obtained food container coating suitability certification from the U.S. FDA. Currently, SR Technopack’s GB-8 has been applied to RTD cup containers of seven domestic and international brands. Through this, SR Technopack explained that it achieved a reduction of 1,353 tons of plastic waste last year.

Cho Hongro, CEO of SR Technopack, said, “If Uni-material products become active, the amount of waste will decrease, and the quality of recycled materials will improve, helping reduce environmental pollution and enhance resource circulation.” He added, “We will cooperate with domestic and international companies to widely apply GB-8 technology in the food distribution market, such as home meal replacements (HMR) and meal kits.”

Packaging made from Sony's 'Original Blended Material'. Photo by Sony

Sony Group Introduces Eco-Friendly Paper Packaging Fully Recyclable Without Separate Sorting from Outer Box to Inner Cushion

Multinational corporation Sony Group has introduced eco-friendly Uni-material paper packaging to reduce plastic usage. Sony Group recently announced that it succeeded in developing the eco-friendly Uni-material ‘Original Blended Material’ to replace existing product outer packaging from plastic to paper.

‘Original Blended Material’ is a highly durable paper made using bamboo, sugarcane fibers, and recycled paper. It can be recycled just like ordinary paper, so it does not require separate sorting or processing facilities, which is a major advantage.

Sony Group used paper packaging applying eco-friendly Uni-material for the packaging of wireless noise-canceling earphones released this year. From the outer box to the inner box, tray, and cushion, all are made of Uni-material, making it 100% recyclable. Sony Group plans to continuously expand the use of paper packaging adopting eco-friendly Uni-material in the future.

Cosmetic container applying Afta Group's eco-friendly pump. Photo by Afta Group

AptarGroup Develops ‘Future Pump’ Made Entirely of Plastic Without Metal... 100% Recyclable

U.S. packaging and container specialist AptarGroup has developed an eco-friendly pump called ‘Future Pump’ applying Uni-material. Generally, pump containers include metal parts, requiring a complex separation process for recycling, which was a disadvantage.

The Future Pump developed by AptarGroup took about two years for design and development. The pump, internal components, and container are all made of polyethylene (PE), making it 100% recyclable. Additionally, the locking mechanism that prevents leakage of the product’s contents is also made of the same polyethylene (PE), providing ease of disposal without separation. AptarGroup’s Future Pump has been certified by Germany’s recycling research institute Cyclos-HTP and the European RecyClass organization, which evaluates the recyclability of plastic packaging.

AptarGroup stated that it is developing technology with the goal of making all packaging 100% recyclable, reusable, or compostable by 2025.