Tokyo-based Mitsui Chemicals is a packaging solutions provider with four verticals in India – coatings & packaging, healthcare, agro, and mobility. The company’s coatings & engineering materials division showcased its range of coatings at the Global Conclave on Plastics Recycling & Sustainability in Delhi in June. Mitsui Chemicals offers a portfolio that includes polyolefin-based coatings, polyolefin dispersion-based coatings, and acrylic coatings.
Chemipearl, its polyolefin dispersion-based coating brand, is an environmentally friendly, water-based product featuring fine polyolefin particles. It provides functions such as heat sealing and resistance to water and oil when applied to paper, forming a substitute for plastic packaging with paper-based alternatives. It is also used in foil applications for packaging chocolates and other food-based products.
Mistui recently developed the Chemipearl coating with different grades for replacing PE films from paper cups with the water-based heat seal coating S3350. Already commercialized in India, Mitsui sells this product to different paper mill companies. The product is being globally developed through Mitsui Chemicals Japan; Mitsui Chemicals Europe; and Mitsui Chemicals America.
The Chemipearl coating has also been introduced to brand owners, Kundan Singh, assistant GM – sales and technical services, coatings & ICT solutions division at Mitsui Chemicals Group, told Packaging South Asia. Various brand owners are procuring the coated paperboard from paper mills, converting it into paper cups and using it, Singh added.
Mitsui’s barrier coatings
Mitsui Chemicals also offers barrier coatings with oxygen transmission rate (OTR) and water vapor transmission rate (WVTR) resistance for flexible packaging. These coatings work for both paper and film applications, Singh said, adding it can be used for both CPP and BOPP films to convert multilayer flexible packaging to monolayer packaging.
For paper packaging, a combination of both OTR and WVTR barrier coating and heat-seal coatings provides heat-seal strength along with barrier properties, he said, adding the paper can be 100% recyclable and repulpable. “In both scenarios, Mitsui Chemicals is providing products for the development of sustainable packaging solutions.”
For paper packaging, the company is currently targeting dry food applications such as cookies, dry fruits, and chocolates. In Japan, Mitsui Chemicals collaborated with an FMCG major to develop secondary paper-based packaging for its snack brand with heat-seal coating, Singh said, adding the company is developing similar products in India as well.
“It’s difficult to impart the specific properties of plastic to paper as both materials have different characteristics and functionalities. While plastic is water-resistant, paper is hygroscopic, meaning that it tends to absorb moisture from the air as well. It is, thus, very difficult to make paper water-resistant or moisture-resistant. It is very difficult to shift all types of packaging to paper as we require a high-moisture barrier, and a high-oxygen barrier. Paper packaging requires much more research and development,” Singh shared.
A major challenge in transitioning from flexible packaging to paper is the high conversion cost, Singh said, while adding that achieving OTR, WVTR, water resistance and moisture resistance properties requires the application of different types of coatings, which involves different processes and increases production cost. “Investing heavily in paper packaging is not a workable solution at present. As compared to plastic packaging, the cost gap is huge. However, research and development are on globally to reduce these costs,” he said.
As sustainable packaging solutions are costly, the government should provide subsidies and assistance for the development and promotion of recyclable products, Singh concluded.
Mitsui Chemicals’ Indian head office is located in Saket in New Delhi with a network of sales and support professionals across the country.
