Republished by Newlife - Flexstone. All rights belong to the original publisher; see Source below.
Nextek and Coveris won Packaging Recycling Project of the Year for COtooCLEAN, a CO2-based technology enabling food-grade recycling of flexible plastic films.
COtooCLEAN, a CO2-based purification technology developed by Nextek in partnership with packaging company Coveris, has been named Packaging Recycling Project of the Year at the UK Packaging Awards 2026, recognizing its progression toward industrial-scale, food-grade recycling of polyolefin films.
The award honors a technology designed to solve one of plastics recycling's most persistent problems: removing embedded contaminants from post-consumer flexible packaging so the recovered material can safely return to food-contact applications. Flexible film — made up of multiple polymer layers and often heavily printed or laminated — has long been considered among the hardest plastic waste streams to recycle to food-grade standards.
Process demonstrated at industrial scale
COtooCLEAN uses supercritical CO2 purification to strip contaminants from post-consumer polyolefin films. Through the Nextek Coveris collaboration, the process is now being demonstrated at industrial scale, producing recycled material intended for food-contact packaging, subject to regulatory approval, and supporting greater circularity for flexible plastics.
A fully operational demonstration plant at Coveris' manufacturing site in Louth, Lincolnshire, is generating the operational data needed to support regulatory approvals while proving the technology's scalability and commercial potential. Funded in part by the Alliance to End Plastic Waste, the facility builds on Coveris' existing recycling capabilities and marks a significant step toward expanding the supply of food-grade recycled content for flexible packaging.
The UK Packaging Awards, which celebrate excellence, innovation, and leadership across the packaging value chain, were held earlier this month in London.
"We are delighted that the COtooCLEAN demonstration plant has been named Packaging Recycling Project of the Year at the UK Packaging Awards," said Edward Kosior, founder and CEO of Nextek.
Kosior said flexible film is one of the hardest waste streams to recycle back into food-grade material, and this recognition from the industry shows how much it matters.
“It is a credit to our team and to our partners at Coveris and the Alliance to End Plastic Waste, whose support has helped us take COtooCLEAN from the lab to an operational demonstration plant,” he said. “With four further award nominations still to come, the momentum behind this technology is really building."
Years of collaborative work
Coveris CEO Christian Kolarik said the recognition reflects years of collaborative work, noting the company is proud to see COtooCLEAN recognised with this award.
“The project demonstrates what can be achieved through strong partnerships and a shared commitment to advancing circularity for flexible plastics,” Kolarik said. “Working alongside Nextek, we have helped take this technology from development into a fully operational demonstration plant, bringing us closer to enabling food-grade recycling for post-consumer flexible packaging. This recognition reflects the progress made in transforming an ambitious concept into a practical solution for the industry."
Coveris was also shortlisted in the Best New Concept category for PolyFlex Thermoform, a nylon-free, recycle-ready polyolefin structure that made its bakery debut this summer with Signature Flatbreads and Al'Fez. The high-barrier thermoforming solution supports the United Kingdom's shift toward kerbside collection of soft plastic packaging under its Simpler Recycling initiative.
Source
- Plastics Today (2026-10-13) - Original article: COtooCLEAN Wins Packaging Recycling Project of Year - https://www.plasticstoday.com/packaging/cotooclean-wins-packaging-recycling-project-of-year
