Manufacturer of water-soluble plastic resins, films and bags. Capabilities include programming plastic to dissolve in cold or hot water and time-dependent dissolution. Services include forming, cutting and printing of plastic materials, as well as custom design and development. Products include soiled laundry bags, hospital waste bags, flushable sanitary pads film and bags and a range of other biodegradable and organic bags and pouches.
In recent times, a number of brands have been marketing PVA-based hot water-soluble polybags as a solution to traditional single-use plastics. This is a very bold claim and one which needs some serious scrutiny. The first thing to note is that PVA has a much higher carbon footprint than Low-Density Polyethylene (LDPE), which is what polybags are traditionally made from. Further, the official life-cycle assessment figures for this type of PVA-based bag show that it has a global warming potential of 11.8 kg CO2 equivalents per kilogram.
A key feature of these bags is that they are’marine-safe’, which means that they are claimed to be able to dissolve or biodegrade in the marine environment if left in the ocean. However, no one has yet shown that this is actually the case, and most studies have found that these bags will persist in the sea for up to 200 days before sand, shingle or seaweed can absorb them. This is far longer than many other types of marine litter, which can typically be seen in the sea for up to a year.
Despite these concerns, the use of PVA-based hot water-soluble bags is still growing, especially in countries where environmental regulations and consumer demand are driving up awareness of plastics issues. As such, manufacturers are experimenting with new materials and technologies to continue to grow their market share in this sector. The main players are focusing on innovation, sustainability, cost-effectiveness and regulatory compliance to stay ahead of their competition. This has led to a wide variety of product offerings and applications for this type of packaging, including soiled linen bags for hospitals, nursing homes, hotels and prisons. This has also resulted in an increase in the number of companies specializing in developing biodegradable and compostable materials for the manufacturing industry, particularly those working with plant-based polymers such as starch or cellulose. These products are able to replace a wide range of traditional packaging materials and can help reduce landfill and ocean pollution. As these technologies become increasingly advanced, they are attracting interest from other sectors, such as the food and beverage industries, which are looking for ways to improve sustainability. In the future, it is likely that we will see a significant reduction in the amount of single-use plastics being produced and used, as more and more manufacturers switch to these more environmentally friendly alternatives. This will have a positive impact on the world’s oceans and marine life, as well as the overall sustainability of the manufacturing industry. This will be a great achievement, which all of us can support by taking simple steps to cut down on our use of single-use plastics. water soluble bag manufacturers
