BERRY Global has claimed ‘high performance, robust solutions and intuitive functionality’ will be crucial to achieving consumer buy-in to tethered closures for plastic bottles, which have now become mandatory throughout the EU and have been increasingly adopted in the UK.
Consumer research firm Watch Me Think independently asked consumers to test a range of tethered closures. Berry said its solutions stood out as ‘user-friendly, functional and comfortable’ caps.
The tethered closure legislation, which came into force in June last year and is part of the EU’s Single Use Plastics Directive, requires plastic bottle caps to remain attached to containers up to three litres in size after opening. Although not a legal requirement in the UK, drinks manufacturers are adopting a standard closure across all markets for ease of production and simplified logistics.
As one of Europe’s largest plastics recyclers, Berry said it recognises the value of recovering the entire pack, since the cap represents a significant part of the total weight of the package.
“Consumer feedback has made it very clear that tethered closures should not impede the drinking experience,” said Vincent Clauzel, EVP food, beverage and specialities, at Berry’s consumer packaging international division. “All our designs ensure that the closure opens to a wide angle and clicks into place to keep it away from the face. It is then also easy to replace it on the top of the bottle for re-closing.”
Berry added that the SUP legislation for tethered closures represented a ‘once in a lifetime’ opportunity for closure suppliers to optimise their product portfolio with the next generation of designs. The firm has invested in development and tooling to make tethered closures a reality. This currently comprises four families of closures, designed for specific products and applications, including still waters, juices, carbonated soft drinks, and sports drinks. Berry is now working on further designs for additional end-markets.
“With our global reach and wide-ranging design and manufacturing capabilities, we are ideally placed to support our customers on a national and international level, ensuring both product quality and supply chain resilience,” said Vincent Clauzel. “Tethered closures are an innovative, forward-thinking circular packaging solution, but they must remain practical and user-friendly.”
