Call identifier:

CIP-EIP-Eco-lnnovation-2009 / 256062

Objectives

Environmental sustainability and resource efficiency

The main environmental benefits of the GreenBottle as compared to an equivalent plastic bottle are as follows:

1. Greenhouse gas emissions – the GreenBottle has a carbon footprint that is 50% that of an equivalent plastic bottle.  The saving over the period of the project would be 4320 tons of carbon dioxide equivalents.  This reduction is as a result of the fact that there is only 25% of the plastic in GreenBottle as compared to a plastic bottle and that the energy used in manufacture is reduced.
2. Waste Management – the GreenBottle uses 75% less plastic than a plastic bottle.  This will generate saving of 39 grams per bottle or equivalent to 4680 tonnes of plastic saved every year during the project.
3. Re-use of Waste – the outer shell of the GreenBottle is manufactured from post consumer re-cycled waste paper.  The initial source is ex-office stationery which fulfils the requirement for the whiteness of the milk bottle.  The GreenBottle is projected to re-use 5520 tonnes of waste paper over the lifetime of the project.  Effectively, the GreenBottle is made from 75% re-cycled material.
4. Material Recycling – the recycling rates for plastic across the EU are about 22% whilst the rates for paper and cardboard are 77%.  Currently, therefore, only 22% of plastic bottles are recycled.  The higher recycle rates for cardboard mean that at the end of the bottles life more GreenBottles will be recycled.  As a result 4250 more tonnes of material will be recycled.
5. Waste Diverted from Landfills – as a result of the above 4867 tonnes of waste will be diverted away from landfills.
6. Reduced resource consumption – the reduction in consumed based polymer will be 4867 tonnes per year.  The whole GreenBottle concept is intended to reduce the amount of plastic used.
7. Energy Consumption – the GreenBottle manufacturing process is inherently more energy efficient than the plastic blow moulding process.  The blow moulding process requires the plastic bead to be heated up to its melting point in order for it to take the shape of the mould.  In contrast, the main energy use in the GreenBottle is the drying of the outer shell once it has been moulded.

Economic sustainability

• The target for the GreenBottle is to make 120 million bottles annually in the milk sector.

These volumes will be achieved initially in the UK by way of approximately 15 customers and then subsequently in the EU and other countries by way of approximately another 10 customers.

Outside the milk category we have development projects underway to supply GreenBottles to a leading multi-national in the liquid detergents category and a leading multi-national in the juice category.