Fairytale ending for compostable packaging film

Innovia Films’ compostable cellulose-based material, NatureFlex, has been selected by Miss Muffet & Co, to wrap its range of fairytale- and nursery rhyme-inspired premium confectionery.

Miss Muffet & Co is a UK-based company, set up by Sarah Cadman, who has a philosophy of using natural ingredients wherever possible.

Outlining why she chose NatureFlex to wrap her range of quality sweets, Sarah stated, “It was really important for Miss Muffet & Co that our packaging had the lowest possible impact on the world around us and it had to clearly show the contents. We chose Innovia Films’ transparent NatureFlex, primarily due to its environmental credentials. At the same time, it keeps our sweets tasting and looking good.”

NatureFlex films are certified to meet the European EN13432, American ASTM D6400 and Australian AS4736 standards for compostable packaging. The wood-pulp is sourced from managed plantations from referenced suppliers operating Good Forestry principles (FSC or equivalent). The renewable bio-based content of the films is typically 95% by weight of material according to ASTM D6866. The film has been confirmed as suitable for emerging ‘waste to energy’ techniques such as anaerobic digestion, aiding the diversion of organic wastes from landfill.

Transparent NatureFlex NE is used to flow wrap the sweets, which are then packed in beautifully designed, storybook-shaped ‘keepsake’ boxes, with drawings by children’s illustrator Rosie Brooks. The titles (stories) of sweets in the range include: Three Blind Sugar Mice, Oranges and Lemon Drops, Jack and the Jelly Bean Stalk, Goldilocks and the Jelly Bears, and Tom Thumb Drops.

“This is an excellent example of a company planning its packaging to meet their ethical product strategy,” said Paul McKeown, Innovia Films’ UK sales manager.

NatureFlex was an obvious solution for the packaging in this application as the film begins life as a natural product - wood - and breaks down at the end of its life cycle in a home compost bin (or industrial compost environment) within a matter of weeks. It also offers advantages for packing and converting such as inherent deadfold and antistatic properties, high gloss and transparency, resistance to grease and oil, good barrier to gases and aromas, print-receptive surface and a wide heat-seal range.