Effects of Milk and Cream Residual Contents in Beverage Carton Packaging Used for Recycling

Milk and cream are often sold in beverage carton packaging. After use, the unconsumed liquid residues and adhering content remain in this packaging. These food residues end up in the recycling cycle, where they pose troubles in the aqueous processing. The aim of this empirical study was to quantify...

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Main Authors: Jürgen Belle, Jonas Rittler, Bastian Küppers, Sven Sängerlaub
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: North Carolina State University 2025-07-01
Series:BioResources
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Online Access:https://ojs.bioresources.com/index.php/BRJ/article/view/24402
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author Jürgen Belle
Jonas Rittler
Bastian Küppers
Sven Sängerlaub
author_facet Jürgen Belle
Jonas Rittler
Bastian Küppers
Sven Sängerlaub
author_sort Jürgen Belle
collection DOAJ
description Milk and cream are often sold in beverage carton packaging. After use, the unconsumed liquid residues and adhering content remain in this packaging. These food residues end up in the recycling cycle, where they pose troubles in the aqueous processing. The aim of this empirical study was to quantify milk and cream residues in beverage carton packaging from recycling streams. 949 recovered cartons that had been filled with milk or cream and consumed in Germany, Austria, and the Czech Republic were analyzed by gravimetric measurement. For 1-liter cartons, the mean value of the residual quantity was 6.6 g residue for every liter filling quantity, with a range of 1.0 to 71.9 g/L. This corresponds to 0.66% residual quantity by mass, with an assumed density of 1.0 g/cm³. Considering a mean value for all the carton weights with residual quantity of 35.8 g for 1-liter cartons, here some cartons without closures, and 29.2 g without residual quantity, this results in a packaging material content of 81% by mass for recycling. The rest is food waste that ends up in the recycling stream. This can be a task for packaging designers to further improve easy-to-empty solutions.
format Article
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institution Kabale University
issn 1930-2126
language English
publishDate 2025-07-01
publisher North Carolina State University
record_format Article
series BioResources
spelling doaj-art-99d65bf64e514f419f649d92497dfee72025-08-20T03:59:30ZengNorth Carolina State UniversityBioResources1930-21262025-07-01203775077582686Effects of Milk and Cream Residual Contents in Beverage Carton Packaging Used for RecyclingJürgen Belle0https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5136-3528Jonas Rittler1Bastian Küppers2Sven Sängerlaub3https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4916-9240Sustainable Materials and Product Design, Munich University of Applied Science HM, Lothstrasse 34, 80335 Munich, GermanySustainable Materials and Product Design, Munich University of Applied Science HM, Lothstrasse 34, 80335 Munich, GermanySTADLER Anlagenbau GmbH, Max-Planck-Straße 21, 88361 Altshausen, GermanySustainable Materials and Product Design, Munich University of Applied Science HM, Lothstrasse 34, 80335 Munich, GermanyMilk and cream are often sold in beverage carton packaging. After use, the unconsumed liquid residues and adhering content remain in this packaging. These food residues end up in the recycling cycle, where they pose troubles in the aqueous processing. The aim of this empirical study was to quantify milk and cream residues in beverage carton packaging from recycling streams. 949 recovered cartons that had been filled with milk or cream and consumed in Germany, Austria, and the Czech Republic were analyzed by gravimetric measurement. For 1-liter cartons, the mean value of the residual quantity was 6.6 g residue for every liter filling quantity, with a range of 1.0 to 71.9 g/L. This corresponds to 0.66% residual quantity by mass, with an assumed density of 1.0 g/cm³. Considering a mean value for all the carton weights with residual quantity of 35.8 g for 1-liter cartons, here some cartons without closures, and 29.2 g without residual quantity, this results in a packaging material content of 81% by mass for recycling. The rest is food waste that ends up in the recycling stream. This can be a task for packaging designers to further improve easy-to-empty solutions.https://ojs.bioresources.com/index.php/BRJ/article/view/24402diaryfood lossemptying behaviorpulpingcircular economypaper recycling
spellingShingle Jürgen Belle
Jonas Rittler
Bastian Küppers
Sven Sängerlaub
Effects of Milk and Cream Residual Contents in Beverage Carton Packaging Used for Recycling
BioResources
diary
food loss
emptying behavior
pulping
circular economy
paper recycling
title Effects of Milk and Cream Residual Contents in Beverage Carton Packaging Used for Recycling
title_full Effects of Milk and Cream Residual Contents in Beverage Carton Packaging Used for Recycling
title_fullStr Effects of Milk and Cream Residual Contents in Beverage Carton Packaging Used for Recycling
title_full_unstemmed Effects of Milk and Cream Residual Contents in Beverage Carton Packaging Used for Recycling
title_short Effects of Milk and Cream Residual Contents in Beverage Carton Packaging Used for Recycling
title_sort effects of milk and cream residual contents in beverage carton packaging used for recycling
topic diary
food loss
emptying behavior
pulping
circular economy
paper recycling
url https://ojs.bioresources.com/index.php/BRJ/article/view/24402
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AT jonasrittler effectsofmilkandcreamresidualcontentsinbeveragecartonpackagingusedforrecycling
AT bastiankuppers effectsofmilkandcreamresidualcontentsinbeveragecartonpackagingusedforrecycling
AT svensangerlaub effectsofmilkandcreamresidualcontentsinbeveragecartonpackagingusedforrecycling