New Sustainable Solutions for Recycling Food-Contact Polystyrene

by Marco Arezio

The mechanical recycling of polystyrene for food use in Italy represents a significant challenge and a promising opportunity within the context of the circular economy.

This process allows the transformation of post-consumer polystyrene waste into new usable materials, thus reducing environmental impact and promoting sustainability.

Despite the initial difficulties in creating an efficient recycling chain for polystyrene, recent technological innovations and strategic collaborations have led to significant achievements in this sector.

Following the collaboration between Versalis, Eni's chemical company, and Forever Plast, Italy's leading company in post-consumer plastic recycling, REFENCE™, an innovative range of recycled polymers for food packaging, was created.

This new range is already available on the market for polystyrene applications such as yogurt pots, trays for meat and fish, and other types of rigid and expanded packaging.

These new products will expand the Versalis Revive® portfolio of mechanically recycled materials, redefining their application limits and enabling direct contact with food.

REFENCE™ was developed thanks to NEWER™ technology, created in Versalis' research laboratories in Mantua and industrialized at Forever Plast's facilities in Lograto (Brescia), under a co-development agreement between the two companies.

NEWER™ technology enables the purification of recycled polymers in compliance with EU Regulation 1616/2022 on recycling and has also obtained the Non-Objection Letter (NOL) from the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA).

Adriano Alfani, CEO of Versalis, stated: "Circularity is a fundamental strategic lever. For this reason, we are committed to developing complementary recycling processes to enhance the value of end-of-life plastics and integrate ourselves into the Italian national collection chain.

We are completing works on our first advanced mechanical recycling hub at Porto Marghera for post-consumer plastics, particularly styrenic polymers.

Our collaboration with Forever Plast aims to reach application sectors, such as food packaging, where sustainability and quality requirements are essential, thus strengthening our European leadership in mechanical recycling."

Piersandro Arrighini, CEO of Forever Plast, added: "We are very pleased with the result achieved, especially considering that until a few years ago there was no recycling chain for polystyrene from separate waste collection at a European level. The collaboration with Versalis has allowed us to reach this extraordinary milestone."