Eastman and Sealed Air have developed a compostable tray for packaging protein

A partnership between Eastman and Sealed Air has resulted in the creation of an innovative tray, which has been purposefully designed to package protein.

The tray is compostable, lightweight, can be easily used as a drop-in replacement for traditional polystyrene foam trays when it comes to manufacturing protein packaging on an industrial scale and finally, it has already been proven to be successful in a variety of market applications. The tray is known as CRYOVAC® and Sealed Air introduced it to the market in January of 2024.

This new tray highlights the commitment to circularity that both of the companies involved in the project also uphold and the material that the tray is designed from, is innovative and suggests excellent development for the plastic waste free world industry. The tray is manufactured out of Eastman Aventa Renew which is a new and unique material that is compostable and contains both biobased and certified recycled content. So far, this tray has been a large success as it has been certified by TÜV Austria and it has also been certified by Biodegradable Products Institute (BPI).

The material that the tray is manufactured out of, goes further than just being compostable, as the wood pulp that is used, is sustainably sourced and the acetyl that is involved, is sourced from a portfolio of recycled materials. This makes the tray easily recyclable and compostable, both at home and in an industrial setting, as due to the cellulose acetate that the wood pulp contains, it is simple for the trays to be broken down by naturally occurring microbes. Altogether, this means that the Aventa Renew material does not remain in the environment as a microplastic, emphasizing that it is an excellent step forwards for both companies, the plastic waste free movement and the environment.

Sealed Air’s Executive Director of Strategic Marketing and Sustainability for the Americas, Tiffani Burt, Ph.D., said, “Encouraging development of a circular plastics economy takes dedication and collaboration from all aspects of the value chain, including where we source our materials. Our CRYOVAC® brand compostable overwrap tray would not be possible without the ingenuity of the product we use from Eastman, and we are excited to partner with them to bring this innovative tray to the market.”  

Eastman vice president of corporate innovation, Jeff Carbeck, Ph.D., commented, “One of the most exciting features of these trays is that they perform like traditional plastic in a challenging atmosphere and yet provide an end-of-life solution through composting — a “win-win” for the environment.” Carbeck continued, “The work we’ve done with Sealed Air demonstrates the commitment of both companies to fulfill circular economy commitments. Aventa Renew and the CRYOVAC® brand combine uncompromising performance with environmental responsibility. We congratulate Sealed Air on this product launch, and we know it will help demonstrate Aventa Renew’s status as a game changer for the food industry.”