Aluminium Cans vs Recycled Plastic Bottles
At Event Wine Solutions, we are committed to supplying wine to events in the most environmentally friendly way possible, so the topic of ‘Aluminium cans vs recycled plastic bottles’ is something we have spent time and resources considering carefully.
From a circular economy perspective in the events industry, re-use is generally the superior choice for packaging and we are pleased to have witnessed the increase of reusable cups and other packaging at events. However, for a wine vessel this is not possible or practical in the foreseeable future due to the complexity of sending bottles back for washing and refilling. As a result, the next best option is a closed loop disposable packaging choice.
When referring to ‘closed loop’, we mean packaging that can be produced from recycled materials and at the end of life can be recycled back into new packaging to be used again. The goal is for this cycle to continue for as long as possible, ideally infinitely.
We have considered both aluminium cans and recycled plastic bottles, alongside other packaging options, and concluded they are both the best possible choices to meet the requirements for closed loop packaging. After careful evaluation and consultation with sustainability professionals, we have concluded that whilst there are benefits and drawbacks to both, there is no clear winner or loser, hence our decision to offer our customers both choices. Both options support the circular economy alongside meeting the practical requirements of the packaging.
Our customer research shows that people buy more wine when it’s packaged in a 750ml bottle format – this is due to the familiar, traditional wine-sharing experience it provides compared to a single-serve can option. That’s why most bar operators opt for this format as their lead item on the wine menu.
In coming to this conclusion, we took on board 4 important considerations:
1. Low carbon material - The virgin and recycled material should have the lowest possible embodied carbon.
Aluminium
Recycled Aluminium has a very low embodied carbon.
However, Virgin Aluminium has a very high embodied carbon. It has the highest embodied carbon of all commonly used packaging materials. This is driven by the high energy cost of mining and refining aluminium from Bauxite.
Demand for Aluminium is very high, so even if you use 100% recycled Aluminium you are driving demand for the virgin material. Despitethis challenge, the use of recycled material is essential in reducing carbon impact and advancing the move towards closed loop recycling systems.
rPET
Recycled PET (rPET) has a relatively low embodied carbon although not as low as recycled aluminium.
Virgin PET has around half the amount of embodied carbon of Virgin Aluminium.
The use of rPET builds a closed loop recycling supply chain that, in the future, may work with bioplastics too (plastics made from plants not fossil fuels). In our opinion, bioplastics are the future of plastics and will hopefully replace petroleum-based plastics one day, but this is an emerging field and no viable solution for wine packaging is currently available. Bioplastics will hopefully have an even lower embodied carbon footprint due to the use of renewable raw materials.
2. Recyclable at end of life - The material should be as recyclable as possible at end of life.
Aluminium can be recycled infinitely, though this is only true with efficient recycling processes and accurate sorting of waste. Aluminium foil, for example, is rarely recycled and often ends up in landfill creating more waste and driving further demand for virgin resources.
PET can be 100% recycled at end of life but its quality degrades over time so cannot be recycled infinitely. There is no definitive answer as to how many times is actually IS recycled, as this depends on the how it is recycled and whether additives are added to reduce degradation. A minimum of 7 times is often quoted, with many studies demonstrating it can be cycled more than this. This is, of course, not as good as being infinitely recyclable.
Both rPET and Aluminium packaging formats are commonly recyclable nationally and internationally.
Recycling rates for both packaging types are around 70-80% and improving. However, this translates to each piece of packaging being recycled in a closed loop only 4-5 times before it is lost. So this is currently a much greater limiting factor than the degradation of material. Although events are doing a good job at promoting recycling, more needs to be done to increase the capture of both these packaging types.
We are keen to support the capture and recycling of our packaging as much as possible which is why we work closely with industry leaders AGF, Rubbish Ideas, and others.
3. Use of recycled material - To be ‘closed loop’ the packaging should be made from recycled materials.
Aluminium cans can be made from 100% recycled material. However, the recycled content is usually only 30-40%.
PET bottles can be made from 100% recycled material and this is increasingly common – the bottles that Event Wine Solutions uses are 100% recycled. We worked hard to achieve this goal, through insisting that our suppliers only provide us with the highest grade 100% recycled material. Our manufacturing partners have been encouraged to partner with us in the production of our mono-layer rPET bottles that are much more readily acceptable at recycling centres than the previously popular multi-layered format.
Using recycled PET reduces the amount of plastic waste in the world and therefore reduces pollution. Legislation should encourage reduced production of virgin plastics and encourage use of recycled material to support this aim, such as the EU’s 30% recycled content mandate. We would like to see increasingly stringent legislation help phase out the use of virgin petroleum-based plastic altogether.
4. Wider impact considerations
Virgin Aluminium comes from Bauxite which, alongside the high energy/carbon cost to extract the Aluminium, is also frequently extracted from under rainforest areas leading to environmental destruction from its mining operations. So, reducing demand for virgin aluminium while increasing the use of recycled material is essential.
Virgin PET is created from oil which perpetuates a reliance on fossil fuels.
Using recycled material is an investment in circular economy infrastructure and, when combined with good legislation, should reduce demand for virgin resources.
In conclusion, we are aware than no single packaging choice is perfect, but our extensive research shows that our current solutions are the best available options at this point in time. We also know this is an on-going and evolving concern and are continually researching and reviewing our options to ensure we are pioneering the best solutions. We hope one day to see our wine in renewable bioplastic bottles or reusable packaging and will continue to champion the circular economy and sustainability as core aspects of our mission. If you’d like to discuss an eco-friendly wine solution for your event, please contact us on: info@eventwinesolutions.co.uk