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Mondi has collaborated with Swedish dairy producer Skånemejerier to create a mono-material, polypropylene (PP) based packaging for Hushållsost cheese. The new packaging has a mono-material base web and lidding film which is produced and printed by Mondi before being converted for 1kg and 2kg blocks of cheese by Skånemejerier. It will be sold in the Swedish supermarket ICA and now comes in packaging that is designed for recycling. Mondi’s mono-material solution protects against oxygen and water vapours as well as boasting high puncture resistance, extending the product’s shelf life. Helene Brynell, regional sales, Nordic consumer flexibles at Mondi, said: “Fresh products like cheese need to be packaged properly – and protection must go hand in hand with sustainable packaging. Our new mono-material solution is fulfilling exactly that: it keeps the cheese fresh while also keeping the packaging materials in circulation through design for recycling.” Rickard Jansson, development engineer at Swedish Plastic Recycling, stated: “We are very positive about the new packaging that Mondi has developed together with Skånemejerier for ICA. By using mono-material film instead of laminate consisting of different types of plastic, we can sort out and recycle the packaging that is left in the system, thus avoiding incineration.” The introduction of this new packaging coincides with the opening of Site Zero, the "world's largest sorting facility for used plastic packaging". This facility will process used plastic waste from both Sweden and Finland. Due to the packaging’s mono-material design, it can be fully recycled, contributing to a circular economy. Jansson added: “With Site Zero's new technology, this PP film-based packaging will be able to become new products, which has not been possible in any facility in Sweden before. It provides circular plastic flows that reduce the need for fossil raw materials and combustion”.