Trend: Plant Based Super absorbent core blend is made with renewable, plant-based material that reduces the amount of SAP gel needed
Trend: Ingredient Transparency
Toxicology report shared for consumers to access Joone Paris Ontex Little Big Change
Premium Products at Accessible Prices
Earth + Eden Amazon “eco - friendly” made by First Quality 0.28 Size 4 | 0.33 Swaddlers or Snugglers
Cloud Island Premium at “an incredible price” by Domtar 0.28 size 4 | 0.33 Swaddlers or Snugglers
Hello Bello Hello Bello Parents shouldn’t have to choose between Marca de Walmart “premium” pero economica what’s best for the baby and their budget. Hecha por Irving en Canada. 0.26 talla 3 By Irving for Walmart 0.32 Size 4 | 0.33 Swaddlers or Snugglers
Trends in Premium Diapers • Subscription service • Patterns – cute patterns, faded vs. bold, white • Softer and Thinner • Diaper Pants • Ingredient Transparency • Green and Safe Claims • Plant Based is King
Post-Consumer Processing Sustainability
Sustainability
Post Consumer Processing Compostable/Degradable Synthetic Materials Materials Composted? NO Recycling? YES Composted? YES Recycling? NO
Product Claims • Common claims that every product has. • Lasts 12 hours, super absorbent, super soft, etc.… • Environmental claims. Sustainability and Biodegradation. • FSC Certified, Compostable, Biodegradable, Certified Eco-Friendly, use of Eco- Friendly Raw Materials, Non-bleached pulp, Chlorine- free, etc.… • Health related claims. • Nontoxic diapers, Hypoallergenic, Dermatologically tested. • Free of fragrances, heavy metals, dyes or inks, latex, rubber, gluten, GMO, phthalates, parabens, WFAs, etc.…. • Some brands exaggerate their claims, or outright lie about them, leading to loss of trust. • FDA approved (FDA does not regulate diapers), Chemical Free, Guaranteed Skin Friendly.
Diaper Eco Products: Environmental Claims and Examples of Liability Risks
Claims related to fluff Pulp: Dioxins and Chlorine Free Claims related to fluff Pulp: Dioxins and Chlorine Free Elemental chlorine free (ECF) is a technique that uses chlorine dioxide for the Elemental chlorine free (ECF) is a technique that uses chlorine dioxide for the bleaching of wood pulp. It does not use elemental chlorine gas during the bleaching bleaching of wood pulp. It does not use elemental chlorine gas during the bleaching process and prevents the formation of dioxins and dioxin-like compounds, carcinogens. process and prevents the formation of dioxins and dioxin-like compounds, carcinogens. Totally chlorine free (TCF) is paper that does not use any chlorine compounds for wood pulp bleaching. Totally chlorine free (TCF) is paper that does not use any chlorine compounds for wood pulp bleaching. The European Commission and US Environmental Protection Agency have recognized ECF bleaching as “ Best Available Techniques ”. The modern The European Commission and US Environmental Protection Agency have ECF pulp mills use bio-activated sludge in wastewater treatment, so the recognized ECF bleaching as “ Best Available Techniques ” . The modern ECF water released back to the watercourses is virtually free of toxic pulp mills use bio-activated sludge in wastewater treatment, so the water substances. released back to the watercourses is virtually free of toxic substances. 53
• Modern ECF bleaching provides pulp with the same or even lower environmental impacts than TCF. • ECF bleaching, in combination with oxygen delignification, provides - with lower energy consumption - higher yield and produces stronger fibers compared to TCF bleaching. • This, in turn, enhances the ability to recycle the products made out of the pulp and contributes to more efficient use of wood resources. • ECF pulp also has higher brightness than TCF pulp.
Sustainability in SAP • It is mostly used just for the biodegradable/natural claim. Deceptive. • Scalability may be an issue with some pilot lab prototypes (PGA, Orange-SAP). • They are mixed with synthetic super absorbents (less always better). • They have good free swell capacity but poor AUL (bleeding). • We have not tested the new (PGA) Bio-SAP. • Possibility of implementing K-SAP back into eco-friendly compostable products.
The Challenge - Summary • Claims lose their strength when used lightly or deceptively. • Using biodegradable or naturally sourced raw materials is preferable to petroleum-based materials, the downside is the loss in product performance. • Current offerings of PLA are not biodegradable in natural conditions, only in industrial reactors. • Viscose is compostable and biodegradable, but the common manufacturing process is not environmentally or worker friendly. • ECF vs. TCF continues to be a debate with consumers for a preference. Consumers concerned with chlorine presence more than environment. • Current offerings of Bio-SAP do not reach desired performance and absorption in products and must be mixed with synthetic SAP.
Post Consumer Diaper Processing
Typical Soiled Baby Diaper 43% 50% 7% Water Feces Reusable Materials
Reusable Materials in a Baby Diaper Total weight= 30 grams 5% 30% 33% 32% Paper Derivatives: Fluff pulp, Curly pulp, and Tissue Core Wrap Plastics: Nonwovens, Film, Hook and Loop, and NW Core Wrap Sodium Polyacrylate (SAP) Others (Spandex and hot melts)
Diaper Recycling
Post-Consumer Diaper Recycling Current Options • Direct Incineration • Loss of energy due to water evaporation • Biodegradation • Really bad option if no methane is recovered • Thermal Pressure Hydrolysis (TPH), Elsinga, NL (Expected Feb 2018). • Incineration with SAP de-activation (CaCl2) and water removal (RDF). • Nagoya Group in Japan launched a new RDF fuel in Sep 2018 (Hoki, Japan) • The Know-Waste (liquid sterilization, No SAP recovery). • Diaper Recycling proposal for air-born sterilizing. • Terracycle (Gamma Ray and separation, expensive, no SAP recovery). • Unicharm (RDF, using Ozone from fuel cell for recovering clean pulp). • P&G-Fater (recycling pulp and plastics, no incineration)
Biggest Challenge for Post-Consumer Recycling • Need of separate bins and centralize collection (special stream) • Collection and freight costs for soiled diapers and RDF • Installing Recycling Factory away from the city Avoiding the use of special stream → Use of scanning systems with optical sorting and infrared vision → Use of ultrasonic sensors to detect bag with diapers automatically. → Provide RFID tags with diapers sold, consumer adds tag to soiled bags → Add a digital water marking to each diaper → Usage of a trash disposal bag that can release air when pressure is applied to prevent blowouts in garbage trucks or recollection systems.
Diaper Composting
Using PLA and Viscose in diapers • PLA -> Not biodegradable in natural condition, only in industrial conditions. • Some products with a PLA backsheet have leaks and humidity going through it. • Viscose -> Biodegradable, compostable. Uses heavy pollutants for manufacturing process. E.g. Carbon Disulfide process. • Performance in diapers is affected due to the tendency for viscose to be absorbent. With an absorbent (hydrophilic) topsheet, rewets tend to be higher, promoting humid skin for the user. • K- SAP… Could we go back to agricultural SAP for use after composting?
Aerated Static Pile Composting
Composting • When a diaper is rolled up into a “burrito” after use, the composting of the cellulose within becomes very difficult. Therefore, specific raw materials like PLA and Viscose are required. • The key parts to allow for composting to work are the backsheet and carrier materials. • Describing the percentage of material that may be compostable could be based on the weight of the soiled diaper, not the weight of the dry diaper. Once the backsheet has been successfully degraded, the feces and urine are accessible to the process. • What can be done regarding sterilization of the materials before composting?
Composting • Parts of the product that cannot be composted are removed from the compost through a screening process after the composting is complete. • Since the composting is done under Aerated conditions there is little to no production of Methane gas. • The SAP remains with the compost and becomes part of the topsoil blend of the final product. • Careful with having excess sodium in the soil!
THE U.S. Product Benchmarks
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