KW Plastics Receives FDA Approval for Post-Consumer Packaging
KW Plastics announced it is now approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to produce high-density polyethylene (HDPE) from post-consumer recycled resin for food-contact-safe packaging.
KW Plastics, headquartered in Troy, Alabama, confirmed in October that it has received a no-objection letter (LNO) from the Center of Food Safety and Applied Nutrition at the US FDA for KWR101-150, a natural postconsumer HDPE resin.
The LNO confirms the resin is cleared for room-temperature filled and stored, refrigerated storage and frozen storage packaging at levels of up to 100 per cent content.
While KW Plastics has produced natural HDPE blow-grade resins for more than 25 years, this expanded clearance will offer the additional benefit of a food-contact-safe resin while offering economic and resource management savings, the company says.
Pedro N. Morales, KW director of sales and marketing, says, “This new regulatory accomplishment permits KW to fully support our brand owners and processors, who are focusing on expanding the use of postconsumer recycling resin (PCR) to many rigid packaging applications where FDA food contact is required.”
He adds, “With KWR101-150, our processors will only have to inventory one natural HDPE PCR for both their FDA and non-FDA compliant applications. Thus, our customers can expect a reduction in resin inventory costs, storage and logistics requirements.”
The application and testing process was approximately a two-and-a-half-year pursuit, the company says, adding that KW executives believe it will add value and volume to the post-consumer resin supply chain.
Scott Saunders, general manager of KW Plastics Recycling Division, says, “KW invested the research and development towards this resin so that we can better serve our customers and meet their demand for more sensitive applications such as personal care items that require FDA resin. We can now offer a PP (polypropylene) and natural HDPE resin in our FDA portfolio.”
KW Plastics Recycling Division recycles postconsumer HDPE and PP plastics and supplies postconsumer resins to the automotive, beauty and personal care packaging, pipe, paint and coatings packaging, agriculture, packaging and sheet industries.
KW says its current volume of natural HDPE postconsumer resin is estimated at 100 million pounds annually, with additional capacity available. Shipments of KWR101-150 will start immediately. Copies of the FDA LNOs can be found on this Web page and the technical data sheet for KWR101-150 can be found here.
KW Plastics is an ISO:9001-2008 registered facility with ISO-IEC 17025:2005 accredited lab.
The KW companies include KW Plastics of Troy, KW Plastics of California, KW Plastics Recycling Division and KW Container.
Source: Recycling Today
