Sustainable Packaging Loosefill and Inflatable Air Cushions Meets EN 13427 Standard for Compliance.

PR Log (Press Release) – Nov 24, 2009 – FP International is pleased to announce that their Biodegradable SUPER 8® loosefill and Biodegradable CELL-O® inflatable air cushions are compliant with EN 13427 standard of the European Packaging Directive, as certified  by PIRA International, a leading independent laboratory. EN 13427 is a European standard for sustainable products under the European Packaging and Packaging Waste Directive and the Essential Requirements Regulation.

“Besides being compliant with the stringent EN 13427 standard, the certification notes that our SUPER 8 loosefill is made of 100% recycled polystyrene which is a valuable product feature because it means a seldom recycled waste product is diverted from landfill,” says Michael Kaminski, FP International Senior Vice President, Worldwide Engineering and R&D. “This falls in line with our Sustainable Packaging initiatives and helps reduce the burden on our environment,” adds Kaminski.

Part of the cradle-to-cradle approach for sustainable products includes how products will be used after they have fulfilled their primary purpose. A sustainable product compliant with EN 13427 standards must be either recyclable, reusable, incinerated with a low calorific output, or biodegradable. Both the CELL-O inflatable air cushions and SUPER 8 loosefill can be reused and recycled. “Although these two products do not biodegrade within the short period designated in the definition of commercial compostable, they will biodegrade within 9 to 60 months in the presence of microorganisms,” says Kaminski. He goes on to say that, “our initial tests have shown our loosefill to completely biodegrade in compost in as little time as nine months.”

The EN 13427 standard also requires that compliant products do not give off any heavy metal residues or contain any harmful or dangerous substances.