ExxonMobil Collaborated on Creation of a High-Performance, Recyclable, Nonlaminated Freezer Film

Provider of plant-based food products Bonduelle, based in France, collaborated with ExxonMobil and film extruder Constantia Drukpol to develop a recyclable, nonlaminated freezer film that aligns with the company’s sustainable goals and meets the rigorous demand of freezer packaging. The project aimed to transition from traditional laminated metallized multimaterial films to a co-extruded monomaterial PE solution, enhancing recyclability and reducing complexity.

Frozen food films can have demanding requirements such as excellent sealability, mechanical strength, moisture and odor barrier, low temperature bagdrop resistance and excellent appearance. An oxygen barrier is not required as the food is kept at sufficiently low temperatures. The project focused on “challenging to pack” vegetables like spinach and broccoli. ExxonMobil proposed its Exceed S performance PE for excellent stiffness and toughness while using less material as well as Exceed 1012 performance PE for strong sealing performance, outstanding cold-temperature toughness and puncture resistance. In the lab, this solution for “challenging to pack” vegetables achieved higher needle puncture and higher tear than the solution for “easy to pack” vegetables. This convinced Bonduelle to test the film in its factory. Ultimately, Bonduelle chose a formulation based on a packaging trial on its VFFS packaging line, where it was satisfied with the abrasion resistance and VFFS line speed that the solution could offer.

Constantia Drukpol was chosen for its strong printing expertise and experience in blown coextrusion film, lamination, laser cutting and pouch-making. This development enables Bonduelle to meet its 2025 goal of 100% recyclable or reusable packaging and is a significant step forward in reducing plastic usage, with a 25% reduction in packaging material for its frozen product range.