Plastisol Liners: The Sound of Safety

If you have ever opened up a glass jar with a metal lid, you might have noticed a gratifying "schlurrr-pop" sound (yep, that’s the technical term). I love this sound because it reassures me that I’m the first to open this container since it left the manufacturer. It means that I don’t have to worry whether or not the driver, shelf-stocking boy, or Suzie-Test-Before-Buying has opened my container and put their fingers or other things in my food.

So, the reason for this post, other than my affection for tamper evident solutions, is to talk about Plastisol liners. Plastisol liners are one method that helps seal metal closures onto containers. Plastisol is a PVC gasket that is used in metal continuous thread and lug (sometimes called twist) closures. It is normally applied to metal lids in a ring shape on the inside of the lid at the point where it will match up with the landing of the bottle.


Plastisol material starts out as a solid. After being heated properly, Plastisol becomes liquidus and forms around the landing of the container that is being sealed. When the material cools it begins to cure, or solidifies, which then creates a tight vacuum seal that produces those comforting sounds mentioned earlier.

Now that we have established a solid foundation of knowledge in Plastisol, it would be good to discuss when it is appropriate to use this sealing method. The key temperature for Plastisol is 212° F. Plastisol can be used to seal glass containers that are hot filled up to 212° F or go through a pasteurization process up to 212° F for 1 hour. It is recommended that Plastisol Liners not be used in home pressure canning processes since the temperature goes well above 212° F, and can distort the Plastisol, and make it ineffective. The correct liner to use in pressure canning is a Retort Plastisol liner, which can resist higher temperatures.

As always, it is highly recommended that you test your product and process with this liner before purchasing a larger amount. This will provide you with the ease of mind that your product is safe and your customers—be it the general public, or grandson Billy—will know this as well.

Post-Consumer Resin (PCR): Now Available!

If you have been following the CPS Blog, and I know that you have, you may have noticed a theme in our recent posts involving plastics and different terms involving the degradability of these plastics. Another way that used plastic containers can be disposed of is through recycling. After being sorted and checked, some recycled containers are lucky enough to be made into a whole new container. We have now made it easier than ever to get a hold of these recycled containers.

We are excited to announce that Container & Packaging Supply is the first national packaging distributor to stock 100% recycled PET containers. So, why do you care? Because this means that you can get in on the sustainability action without being a big player (in other words, you don’t have to special-order ten-thousand of these bad boys).

The proper term for 100% recycled containers is post-consumer resin or PCR for short. Packaging your products in containers made from PCR is a great way to make your business more sustainable, environmentally responsible, and green.

The PCR that is used in our new PCR family is made from PET water bottles and soda bottles collected in community recycling programs. The discarded bottles are collected, ground, washed, dried, pelletized, crystallized and solid-stated back into plastic resin pellets which are then remade into your favorite container shapes. Oh, and the whole process has the “loved-by-the-FDA” stamp of approval. That means you can even put food in it.

Just to prove that PCR completes the never-ending loop of sustainability, we’ve drawn a little picture for you to show you how it works.

At CPS, we’ve already got a pretty generous selection of PCR items available (click the image below to view our new PCR family in our online catalog).



We thought you might have some questions … so here are some answers:

What are the environmental benefits of PCR? The PCR PET bottles that we stock require approximately 60% less energy to create than it takes to make virgin plastic from fossil fuels. Uh, that’s a lot. That said, plastics ALREADY use less energy than many of their alternatives. The more PCR content you put in each bottle, the more Mother Earth will smile and that is one reason we’re stocking 100% PCR bottles.

Is the post-consumer PCR used in these bottles and jars FDA-approved? Yes. Our manufacturer only uses FDA-approved recycled PET PCR. They have identified several reliable sources for FDA-approved recycled resin. And if the FDA approved it, it means that food and drug can be safely packaged.

Are there any drawbacks to PCR? The most common complaints about PCR are occasional black flecks in the finished bottles and a yellow or gray tint in clear and light-colored bottles. PCR is subject to some normal color variations, so customers should be willing to accept a slightly wider variation in the color of their finished packaging.

How will my customers know that the bottles and jars I’m using are good for the environment? Put a message on your product’s label to let your customers know you are using 100% recycled packaging: a true and important claim for many consumers. We can provide you with small logos you can incorporate in your labels and marketing materials. Just contact us at CPS Design for design tips as well as more assistance with your packaging design needs. The bottom of these containers will include the “1” resin identification code for PET plastic, and you can encourage customers to recycle your packaging again at most community recycling centers by putting a “please recycle” statement on your package.

Does PCR cost more than virgin plastic? The cost of PCR is only slightly higher than virgin PET due to the sorting, cleaning, and processing required to turn consumer waste into FDA-approved plastic.

PCR PET containers are an exciting way to market your goods as an environmentally friendly product. It is a great option to aid in the reduction of waste and to help re-use the PET containers that are being recycled on a daily basis. For more information, please feel free to contact one of our customer support representatives about PCR.

Bioplastics: What you need to know

A common misconception is that landfill waste will biodegrade. Nothing really biodegrades in a landfill, even food, because waste gets locked away from moisture, sunlight, and oxygen ... all important elements of bio-degradation. Not only does a material have to be biodegradable, but it must be placed in the right conditions to actually degrade.

What is biodegradation? Biodegradation is actual every-day science. You've watched things biodegrade. We're all familiar with this process. Ever left an apple core or a banana peel on the counter? Ever left leftovers too long in the fridge? That banana peel, the longer it is exposed to sunlight, oxygen, rain, and microorganisms (like bacteria or fungi), eventually goes away. Things that go away are biodegradable.

Where do things go after they biodegrade? Pardon the Existentialistic underpinnings of that question, but when that banana peel goes away, it actually transitions from banana peel to something else. It breaks down into water, carbon dioxide and biomass (a charming word for a trail mix of hydrogen, oxygen, nitrogen, and carbon). These items are naturally-occurring elements and are absorbed into the ecosystem. That banana peel came from Mother Earth, and now returns to her bosom. Circle of life.

Are all plastics biodegradable? Do all humans like opera music? Do all children like asparagus? Does every tree shed its leaves in the fall? Plastics are different. Some are tough, some are flexible, others are light, others are heavy. Some plastics are biodegradable, and others are not. All plastics are degradable, meaning that their chemical composition will change. For a plastic to be biodegradable, it must degrade from naturally occurring forces (like bacteria or fungi), and be absorbed into the ecosystem. However, biodegradation, as it is defined, has no requirement for how long that process takes, nor for whether or not it leaves a toxic residue.

Degradable, Biodegradable and Compostable plastics: what's the difference? Conventional petroleum based plastics are degradable; in the right circumstances their chemical properties will downgrade (degrade). Biodegradable plastics, with the help of naturally occurring bacteria and fungus will go away. Time and toxicity are not factored in to whether or not a plastic is biodegradable. Compostable plastics are plastics that biodegrade at the same speed as paper AND don't leave any toxic residues. This triangle of plastics shows not only the earth friendliness of these three plastic groups but also the circulation.

But plastics are everywhere? Is this bad? Absolutely not. Plastics are everywhere because they are wonderful! If plastics are disposed of properly (i.e. recycled, reused, properly incinerated) they have minimal impact on our environment; much less than plastic alternatives. Imagine all of the plastic in your world ... containers, bottles, shampoo bottles, chairs, auto parts, clothing, fabric, carpets, pipes, tubes, straws, kitchen appliances, and more. Now imagine if it was all now made of metal, wood, or glass. Think of the costs? Think of the weight? Think of the energy waste? Plastics are good for you and our environment, some more than others, true.

Compostable Plastics: 3 Things You Need To Know

Plastics continually evolve. Science progresses, the market demand changes, health advocates push for improvements and new plastics are born. Compostable plastics are a new wave of plastics ... and with that wave comes an accompanying ripple of confusion. Here are three things you need to know about compostable plastics.

Compostable plastics are made from renewable materials
Compostable plastics are generally made from renewable materials like corn starch, potato starch, tapioca starch, cellulose, soy protein, and yes, even petroleum. The six most common plastic types are made from petroleum (HDPE, PET, PP, LDPE, PVC, PS), and are non compostable. However, there are some compostable plastics made from petroleum.

Compostable, biodegradable and degradable are not the same thing
These three terms are NOT interchangeable. This article focuses on compostable plastics and we'll discuss biodegradable and degradable plastics in follow up articles. In order for a plastic to be compostable, it must meet these three criteria:

1. The plastic must biodegrade. This means that the plastic can break down into carbon dioxide, water, and biomass at the same speed as paper.
2. The plastic must disintegrate. This means that the plastic breaks down to the point that you can't screen it out of the compost soil.
3. The plastic does not produce toxins. This means that as the plastic biodegrades it does not produce toxic materials and that the compost can support plants.
   

Most compostable plastics require a commercial composting system
Even though some plastics are compostable, your home compost system cannot generate the heat necessary to compost your plastics. So, don't throw your compostable plastics into your compost heap or bin ... because they most likely won't degrade.

Newest Video: What is PP?

If you've been following our videos, you've learned that not all plastics are the same, in fact, there are hundreds of different kinds of plastic. Thanks to the Society of Plastics Industry (SPI), they have kindly categorized all plastics into seven different categories: PET, HDPE, PVC, LDPE, PP, PS and the catch-all Other. Each plastic type has what we call a resin identification code on it. (Resin is just another word for "type-of-plastic.") PP is short for Polypropylene. It is marked with the resin identification code "5".

Watch our latest video to learn some of what makes PP so unique.



See more of our videos here at www.containerandpackaging.com/videos

What's the difference? M, mm, ml, mil

Say hello to mil. No, this is not what your Great Aunt Mildred's bingo friends call her, but rather a prefix. You may think that mil would be short for "million." But, if you thought that, you'd be wrong. Mil actually means "thousand," and we can thank the Romans for that inconsistency.

M
The M is a Roman numeral for thousand. In Roman numeration, MMXVII actually means one thousand, one thousand, ten, five, one, one ... or 2017. Very often we associate "K" with thousand too. The K, however, stems from "kilo" which means thousand in the metric system. Just to keep things exciting "M" is also used to abbreviate million ... I know, this is very confusing, but "million" being abbreviated to "M" has less to do with historicity and more to do with laziness:

• MMXVII = 2017
• $129K = $129,000
• $1.75M = $1,750,000
  

mm
This is a linear unit of measurement within the metric system. Mill still means "thousandth" in this case and consequently a millimeter, is one thousandth of a meter. The whole milli thing isn't too hard to remember: millipede, millennium, millisecond, and so on. They all mean thousand.

ml
The "ml" stands for milliliter. The abbreviation "ml" is typically pronounced M-L, saying the letters out loud, or milliliter. This is a unit of measurement for liquids. Similar to mm, ml stands for one thousandth of a liter. Many labels for containers include an oz / ml conversion on the bottom. For instance you may see on the bottom of a shampoo bottle: 8 oz / 237 ml.

mil
Mil (pronounced "mill") is one thousandth of an inch. This form of measurement is often used to measure the thickness of flat objects like: plastic cards, credit cards, plastic zip lock bags, sheets of plastic tarp and so on. Most plastic ID cards like your driver's license and your credit cards are 30 mils. (Notice the plural form of mil). That means that your credit card is 30 mils ÷ 1,000 = 0.030 inches. Here at Container & Packaging Supply we have, for example, a 4 mil zip lock bag, and a 75 mil pail. This means that the zip lock bag is made of plastic 0.004 inches thick, and the pail is 0.075 inches thick.

Remembering that B9 and G46 are two very different spots on your BINGO card is critical to an uncontested win. Shouting "BINGO" prematurely is always a little embarrassing. Likewise, you wouldn't want to say a pail is 75 millimeters thick when it's actually 75 mils. There's a big difference between 75 millimeters and 75 mils ... like 2.875 inches! Can you imagine a pail being 3 inches thick?!

Introducing CPS Design (Part 2)

Container & Packaging Supply has added a whole NEW department with one goal in mind ... MAKING IT EASIER FOR YOU.

CPS now offers in-house high quality artwork design and we call it (this is REALLY creative we promise): CPS Design.

We know that launching a new product involves MANY moving parts: the container, the closure, the decoration, the artwork, the shipping, and more. We know this is a challenge, but why make it harder for yourself? Why would you have Company A source your container, Company B source your closure, Company C do your artwork? That's why we do our best to make CPS your one-stop shop, and CPS Design just made things easier.

Take a look at this quick flash video on what CPS can do for you ... CPS Design truly makes CPS a no-brainer decision when it comes to choosing a packaging vendor.