The new recyclable barrier films will be used by Dharmesh Foods for vacuum-packing wheat
Dow and Vishakha developed the recyclable barrier film for Dharmesh Food’s vacuum-packing wheat. (Credit: Dow)
Dow Packaging & Specialty Plastics (Dow P&SP) has joined forces with Vishakha Group and Dharmesh Foods to accelerate the use of recyclable packaging solutions for wheat in India.
Under the deal, barrier film manufacturer Vishakha will work with Dow P&SP for the development of a new recyclable barrier film for solids packaging.
Wheat processor Dharmesh Foods will use the developed recyclable barrier films for vacuum-packing wheat.
The company will use vacuum-packed flexible packaging to enhance shelf life and eliminate contamination.
The recyclable barrier films produced by Vishakha are said to be suitable for wheat, as it can extend shelf life and minimise food wastage.
Vishakha Polyfab CMD Jigish Doshi said: “We at Vishakha always strive to contribute to the future of the country, by developing sustainable solutions for agriculture, renewable energy, storage, and in this case, packaging materials that allow for longer shelf life.
“This recyclable barrier film solution will not only add to the shelf life of the product and reduce food waste, it also helps communities in allowing for recycling of the packaging itself.”
RETAIN Polymer Modifiers have been developed leveraging Dow’s knowledge of materials science and reactive chemistry to facilitate the better compatibilisation of two otherwise immiscible materials, while maintaining value-added physical properties.
The RETAIN polymers enable recyclers to re-process used barrier films into conventional polyethylene-based recycle streams when blended at specified ratios with pelletised barrier film recycle streams.
Dow P&SP India sales director Vipul Babu said: “The joint effort between Dow P&SP, Vishakha team and Dharmesh Foods saw the three companies come together to co-develop a nylon-based barrier film enabled by Dow’s RETAIN Compatibilizer to make recyclable packaging for wheat.
“This partnership brings valuable stakeholders together to foster positive impacts with sustainable packaging solutions.”