The First Application of “Resource Recycling Project” to Pharmaceutical Packaging
Company:
Resource Recycling Project (Shionogi Pharma, NEION, TOYOBO, TOPPAN INFOMEDIA, Mitsui Bussan Chemicals, YAMATO BOX CHARTER)
Country: Japan
Category: Medical and Pharmaceutical
Label backing release liner typically uses composite materials of paper and resin, which are generally difficult to recycle. As a result, they become a large amount of industrial waste and are incinerated. In the Japanese manufacturing industry, the volume of such waste has risen to 1.39 billion* m² per year. In this project, we replace these label backing release liner with release liner for recycling made from PET-based synthetic paper. After use, the release paper is collected as valuable materials and subjected to material recycling. By using the recycled material again as a raw material for release liner for recycling, we achieve Film-to-Film recycling. This will enable the social implementation of closed recycling system of label backing release liner.
We aim to establish the recycling arteriovenous functions within the project, forming a closed-loop system where resources continuously circulate horizontally. Our goal is to realize a circular economy that achieves reduction of CO2 emissions and zero waste of release paper.
As of July 2024, 35 organizations are participating in this project and the separation and collection of release liner for recycling have already begun for eight users including Shionogi Pharma, Kao, and National Federation of Agricultural Cooperative Associations Gifu. The recycling plant dedicated to this project, which was completed in April 2024 has started the phased recycling of release liner for recycling collected from these users.
The amount of treatment this fiscal year 2024 is expected to be approximately 15 tons, and the reduction in CO2 emissions is expected to be 169 tons. We aim to recycle 200 tons annually by 2026 and 700 tons annually by 2030. Ultimately, we are committed to achieving zero disposal of label backing release liner by implementing specific initiatives both domestically and internationally.
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Since April 2022, Shionogi Pharma has been participating in the “Resource Recycle Project,” which aimed to achieve horizontal recycling of label backing sheets. In March 2023, Shionogi Pharma started commercially applying horizontally recyclable label backing sheets to labels used for nine types of ampoule injections; this was the first initiative in commercial production.
In this project, we are recycling the label backing sheets (i.e., release paper, label liner). Although labels are critical for displaying information in the pharmaceutical industry, most of their backing sheets are not recycled as resources but discarded or incinerated. Essentially, an equivalent number of backing sheets to the labels produced is generated and disposed of. The “Resource Recycle Project” introduces a novel initiative to eliminate waste from label backing sheets by switching to a plastic film made with over 25% recycled PET material, known as “recycling-dedicated backing sheets.” Like plastic bottles, these sheets can be collected and reused, thereby circulating as a resource, and achieving zero wastes in factories. In our project, the recycling-dedicated backing sheets collected from factories are recycled into new backing materials, allowing the resources to continue circulating.
The Resource Recycle Project has established functions at the “arterial function,” where products are created, and the “venous function,” where waste is collected and recycled. Arterial function begins with the production of the film that will become the “recycling- dedicated backing sheet.” This film is coated with an adhesive to create the base material for labels, which are then printed and cut into shapes, eventually reaching label users like Shionogi Pharma.
The products with applied labels reaching people are followed by venous function. Once enough are accumulated, these are transported to recycling facilities across the nation using the Yamato Group’s logistics network, where material recycling is carried out; in this process, contaminants are removed, and the backing sheets are finely shredded into flakes, which are then melted at high temperatures and form pellets. These pellets are used as raw materials to produce new films, completing a cycle repeated throughout the project scheme.
This initiative has demonstrated horizontal recycling for pharmaceutical packaging, which is difficult to use recycling material, and has big ripple effect that can be expanded to all industries which use labels.Read Less
Category: SPECIAL AWARD - Sustainability
Special Award: Silver Award
The recycling-dedicated backing sheets have been designed based on the below. Both of them have manufactured by Toyobo Co., Ltd.
>“KAMISHINE” uses more than 25% recycled raw materials from PET bottles.
>“KAMISHINE NEO” uses more than 25% horizontally recycled raw materials such as the recycling-dedicated backing sheets. . We will gradually promote horizontal recycling to circulate “KAMISHINE NEO”.
Furthermore, general PET film has a specific gravity of 1.4, but its unique structure with internal cavities reduces the specific gravity to 1.0, contributing to lower costs and resource conservation. (Due to a hollowed-out structure, an approximately 30% reduction of raw materials comparison with general PET films has been achieved.)
These have both the advantages of film, such as heat resistance, dimensional stability, chemical resistance, and strength, and the advantages of paper, such as adhesion to various inks and coating agents. It is also the perfect material for this environmentally friendly project.
The life cycle assessment (LCA) of the recycling-dedicated backing sheets shows that the CO2 emissions can be reduced by 21.6% compared to the paper liner. Considering the ubiquity of labels across various products, labels are used in every industry. It is challenging for just one company like Shionogi Pharma to significantly reduce waste and CO₂ emissions alone. Therefore, it is crucial to expand the recycling efforts of the Resource Recycle Project across all industries to collectively reduce these impacts. If all companies using labels join this ecosystem, we can potentially eliminate the disposal of approximately 1.4 billion m2 of backing sheets annually in Japan, making this an initiative with significant ripple effects.
Recycling-dedicated backing sheets are thinner than paper release liners yet have equal or greater strength. This means that a greater number of labels can be rolled into rolls of the same diameter, and this helps to boost the production efficiency of customer's factory.
Unlike paper release liners, recycling-dedicated backing sheets do not absorb moisture. Therefore, curling caused by moisture absorption & desorption is greatly reduced. This means that the shelf life of label roll materials may be extended.
If the “paper release liners” are replaced with “recycling-dedicated backing sheets” that have been designed from materials that enable material recycling, it becomes possible to carry out the valuable recovery of used label backing sheets from users.