The demand for sustainable shrink sleeves for PET bottles continues to grow. Especially for sleeves used on beverage and plastic bottles, material choice has become increasingly important, as it directly impacts both the environmental footprint and the recyclability of PET bottles. Two solutions are currently in focus: rPET sleeves and C-PET sleeves. Both are regarded as modern alternatives to conventional shrink sleeves and play a key role in design-for-recycling strategies.
Today’s shrink sleeves are expected to do more than look good. They must also be sustainable, recyclable and reliable in production. Both rPET and C-PET sleeves can be printed and are suitable for hot-air and steam shrink applications. While conventional PET- or PVC-based sleeves are still available, the market is clearly moving toward recyclable shrink sleeves that integrate smoothly into existing PET bottle recycling streams. In particular, design-for-recycling sleeves are increasingly in demand, as they support high-quality PET recycling.
rPET sleeves, made partly or entirely from recycled PET, are often chosen when the focus is on using recycled material and achieving a favorable CO₂ balance at the material level. They are printable and suitable for both hot-air and steam shrink processes. In standard applications, rPET sleeves can also be a cost-effective option. However, it is important to understand that rPET sleeves do not automatically separate from the PET bottle during recycling. This can interfere with the recycling stream. Whether rPET sleeves are ultimately considered sustainable therefore depends largely on the overall packaging and recycling system.
C-PET sleeves are mainly produced from virgin PET, but are specifically engineered to enable efficient recycling of PET bottles. Like rPET sleeves, they are printable and suitable for hot-air and steam shrink processes. Their key advantage lies in their reliable separation from the bottle during recycling, keeping the PET material clean. This results in high acceptance among retailers, brand owners and recyclers. C-PET sleeves already meet current and upcoming design-for-recycling requirements and are therefore considered a future-proof solution for recyclable shrink sleeves. It should be noted that recycled content is not automatically included and that material or approval costs may be slightly higher.
In practice, the actual recyclability of a shrink sleeve is more important than the recycled content alone. A C-PET sleeve that enables clean PET bottle recycling is often environmentally more beneficial than an rPET sleeve. Choosing the right material for recyclable shrink sleeves should therefore always be approached from a system perspective. While rPET offers advantages in terms of recycled content and CO₂ savings, C-PET optimizes recycling processes and is often the more sustainable overall solution. The decisive factor is ensuring that shrink sleeves do not disrupt PET bottle recycling, allowing true sustainability.
For sustainable shrink sleeves, material choice alone is not sufficient – the right machinery technology is equally important. In addition to developing and manufacturing sleeves, we also provide Sleeve Labeling Machines as well as hot-air and steam shrink tunnels that are perfectly matched to rPET and C-PET sleeves. This enables reliable and efficient implementation of full-body sleeves, tamper-evident closures and design-for-recycling concepts.
We help you choose the right sleeves for PET bottles, including wash-off sleeves, floatable sleeves, full-body sleeves and design-for-recycling sleeves that perform reliably in production, logistics and recycling.
Learn more: Shrink sleeves directly from the manufacturer Feel free to contact us for personal advice and shape the sustainable future of your shrink sleeves together with us. Get in contact with us: info_at_tbs-pack.de
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