A pack produced by Berry Global for Norwegian ice cream manufacturer Diplom-Is’s Royal brand has won the International Ice Cream Consortium (IlCC) award for best packaging solution. Key factors in the decision included the introduction of a new non-carbon black color to improve recyclability, and design adjustments that improve efficiency and reduce waste during production.

Thanks to its collaboration with Berry, Diplom-Is has pioneered the use of the non-carbon black, making the plastic containers for Royal ice cream easier to recycle for the first time.

“Our switch to non-carbon black has resulted in up to 130 tons of plastic annually going from being unrecyclable to becoming easier for recycling*,” said the company’s Packaging Developer, Almantas Dubra.

Unlike traditional carbon black, the new non-carbon black containers are detectable by Near Infra-Red (NIR) scanners for waste sorting processes. This means that they can be identified for recycling purposes. Berry employs a specific high-quality non-carbon black masterbatch with special pigments to further enhance NIR technology detection and sorting. 

As a further example of its commitment to packaging innovation, Diplom-Is, with the assistance of Berry, has also introduced a design tweak for its 0.9-liter Royal containers to address issues of boxes sometimes sticking together during production. According to Diplom-Is, the alteration has significantly diminished plastic waste in Diplom-Is’ production.

"We are constantly striving for improvement, and our work on the Royal portfolio exemplifies this," Dubra said.

* Estimation, recyclability will depend on the availability of recycling infrastructure in the region of disposal.