Australasian rigid plastic packaging company Alto Food Packaging (www.alto.co.nz) and Cardia Bioplastics (Melbourne / Australia; www.cardiabioplastics.com) have formed a partnership to develop bio-based packaging for fresh food. The packaging will be manufactured using Cardia’s “Biohybrid” thermoplastic starch resins, which combine renewable thermoplastics with oil-based polymer material. The renewable material is derived from corn crop grown for industrial use.

“By incorporating our thermoplastic starch resins into their packaging systems, Alto Packaging is taking significant steps to reduce the environmental footprint of their packaging products,” stated Cardia managing director Frank Glatz. The resins are compatible with current plastic recycle processes and will be food safe compliant, Cardia said.

Ron Starnes, technical manager at Alto Food Packaging, said: “We are serious about creating a more sustainable future through the use of more renewable materials, and we are looking forward to working with Cardia Bioplastics to bring more environmentally-friendly packaging solutions to the market, in Australia and in New Zealand.”

Alto Food Packaging, which is a subsidiary of the Pact Group (Melbourne / Australia; www.pactgroup.com.au), has eight plants in New Zealand and four in Australia. It specialises in extrusion and thermoforming, blow moulding and injection moulding for markets including fresh food, beverages, personal care and health.