Use-case 6 update about the reusable bottle for home care detergents & Bag-in-Box for loose goods

➡ It is led by Asevi Home Brands, a Spanish company specialised in manufacturing products for cleaning, hygiene and home care; and Smurfit Kappa Bag-in-Box Packaging, the European leader for Bag-in-Box® solutions that provide flexible packaging solutions for liquid & semi-liquid products in the agricultural, food and industrial sectors.

➡ This use-case is about the development of a reusable 1.2L bottle to be filled in with detergent at a dispensing machine in the supermarkets in Spain. 

The consumers will have to buy the reusable bottle once and they will be able to fill it in with the detergent of their choice at the dispensing machine in the supermarket. The dispensing machine will be connected to a Bag-in-Box system that will contain the detergent in a flexible and recyclable bag.

➡ This use-case is intended to replace the existing format of single-use plastic bottles for home care detergents, which are widely used in Spain and in other countries. 

The consumers will benefit from a lower price per liter of detergent, as well as from a more sustainable and convenient way of buying home care products.

After 24 months since the start of the project, the partners have been able to achieve the following:

· Echobrand has designed a reusable bottle, adding the key attributes to ensure its stability during reuse as well as an easy consumer experience.

· AIMPLAS · Instituto Tecnológico del Plástico has selected the material for the bottle (HDPE with 50% recycled content), and has performed stress cracking tests to evaluate its durability.

· Smurfit Kappa Bag-in-Box Packaging has developed a Bag-in-Box system with 100% recycled and recyclable PE film and has tested its compatibility with the detergent and the dispensing machine.

· The University of Sheffield has conducted an ethnographic research to understand the consumer behaviour and preferences 

· Searious Business has performed a cost-benefit analysis and has identified the profitability drivers for the value chain stakeholders.

· LNE, CTCPA - Centre Technique Agroalimentaire and IPC - Centre Technique Industriel de la Plasturgie et des Composites have led the chemical safety and risk assessment related to microplastic release and migration, assuring the physicochemical stability and food contact safety of the bottle and the Bag-in-Box.

· Vytal Global will use its technology to track the packaging in the use case trial.