Recycling Processes in Food Contact Materials

Recycling processes for food contact materials encompass mechanical, chemical and physical approaches to recover polymers while ensuring safety and functionality. Mechanical recycling typically involves collection, sorting, washing and remelting of post-consumer plastics, but may leave residual contaminants that demand robust decontamination steps. Chemical recycling breaks down polymers into monomers or oligomers, offering potential for the removal of additives and non-intentionally added substances, though it remains energy-intensive. Emerging physical methods, such as supercritical extraction and advanced filtration, aim to target low-molecular-weight migrants and persistent organic pollutants. Functional barriers—such as co-extruded layers of virgin polymer—can mitigate migration of residual substances into food, contributing to regulatory compliance. Analytical advances including high-resolution mass spectrometry and migration modelling underpin risk assessment, informing threshold-based criteria and facilitating closed-loop systems. The move towards a circular economy has driven innovations in process control, material design and supply-chain transparency, supporting industry-scale trials of bottle-to-bottle and cup-to-cup recycling. Globally, harmonised standards and collaborative research are accelerating adoption of sustainable practices, with practical applications spanning fresh produce packaging, beverage bottles and multilayer trays.

Research from Nature Portfolio

No recent Nature Portfolio content available.

Recycling Processes in Food Contact Materials publication trend

The graph below shows the total number of articles in recycling processes in food contact materials across all publications each year (not limited to Nature Index journals).

Technical terms

Mechanical recycling: A process involving physical reprocessing of post-consumer polymers through sorting, washing and remelting to produce recycled pellets.

Non-intentionally added substances (NIAS): Unexpected or residual compounds formed during production, degradation or contamination that may migrate into food.

Functional barrier: A layer of virgin polymer integrated into multilayer structures to reduce migration of contaminants from recycled layers.

Circular economy: An economic model that emphasises reuse, recycling and resource efficiency to minimise waste and maintain material value.

References

1. Migration of volatile substances from recycled high density polyethylene to milk products. Food Packaging and Shelf Life (2023).
2. Assessment of chemical risks and circular economy implications of recycled PET in food packaging with functional barriers. Resources Environment and Sustainability (2024).
3. Circularity Study on PET Bottle-To-Bottle Recycling. Sustainability (2021).
4. Recycling of Post-Consumer Packaging Materials into New Food Packaging Applications—Critical Review of the European Approach and Future Perspectives. Sustainability (2022).
5. Assessment of Supercritical CO2 Extraction as a Method for Plastic Waste Decontamination. Polymers (2020).
6. Identification and Evaluation of (Non-)Intentionally Added Substances in Post-Consumer Recyclates and Their Toxicological Classification. Recycling (2023).