Finnish company Walki has introduced a portfolio of paper-based packaging for frozen food applications, including printed solutions.
The Walki EVO Seal and Walki Opti Seal are paper-based packaging especially intended for pillow-pouches for frozen food, such as vegetables, seafood, and bakery products. According to Walki, the EVO Seal has a dispersion coating barrier against water vapour and grease, while Walki Opti Seal features an optimised PE-extrusion coating. Both solutions are intended to be recyclable in existing paper streams.
Andreas Rothschink, head of product development at Walki, explains: “The dispersion coating makes Walki EVO Seal recyclable in the waste-paper stream without any separation process, while the minimised PE-coating on Walki Opti Seal makes it suitable to be recycled with paper with an acceptable fibre yield.”
Additionally, Walki says its Lamibel MDO-PE is a film-based material for pillow pouches made of reverse printed MDO-film and solvent-free laminated with low sealing LDPE; the MDO technology means that film thickness is minimised while performance is maximised by replacing other sorts of materials such as PP- or PET-films.
Walki claims the Lamibel MDO-PE is suitable for all types of packaging, including doypack, flowpack, and pouches. It can offer a packaging solution for frozen foods including vegetables, sharp-edges seafood, and bakery products.
“This combination of two PE-films makes the packaging fully recyclable in the plastics stream. The stretched film has better optics with high stiffness and mechanical properties than standard PE. The film can also be transparent, allowing the consumer to see the product.” adds Rothschink.
Walki Pack Tray is a board-based tray designed to replace aluminium, plastic, or plastic-coated trays. Walki claims that the tray material is 100% PET free and recyclable in the paper stream.
Dudley Jones, consumer sales at Walki, adds: “The tray is easy to fill, transport and store, and is also the convenient choice for the consumer as the fibre-based tray is safe to use in microwaves and in conventional ovens up to 220 degrees for up to 60 minutes.”
Walki cites data that suggests the global market for frozen food is expected to grow to €322 billion by 2026.
