Recycled beverage crates made from marine plastics

Beverage crates are one of the inconspicuous but central components of reusable logistics. They are constantly in circulation, being stacked, transported, washed and refilled. This is precisely why the choice of materials, durability and recyclability are increasingly coming into focus.

A current approach focuses on recycled beverage crates made from marine plastics, thereby converting waste from other industries into a stable reusable cycle. The idea behind this is as pragmatic as it is consistent: plastics that were originally used as fishing nets or ropes in a maritime environment are given a second life as transport packaging. This makes use of a material that is mechanically highly resilient and at the same time available in large quantities. For the beverage market, this results in a product that combines functional requirements with ecological responsibility.

Beverage crates as durable infrastructure

Reusable crates are particularly important in the German beverage market. They are designed for decades of use and must meet extreme requirements. Impacts, moisture, UV radiation and temperature fluctuations are part of everyday life. At the same time, the crates should be as light, stackable and standardised as possible to enable smooth processes in bottling plants, retail and catering. Plastic established itself as a suitable material for this purpose early on. Since the introduction of the plastic bottle crate at the end of the 1950s, the basic principle has been continuously developed. Today, the focus is less on new designs and more on how existing systems can be made more sustainable without limiting their functionality.

Maritime waste as a source of raw materials

A key starting point is the origin of the material. Maritime waste such as disused fishing nets or ropes poses a significant environmental problem worldwide. At the same time, these plastics are highly durable and resistant to ageing. In a complex processing procedure, they are collected, sorted, shredded and processed into granulate suitable for industrial production. This step is technically challenging because the source material varies greatly. Different types of plastic, contamination and ageing conditions must be balanced. Only after processing is a raw material created that can be reliably used in injection moulding processes and meets the mechanical requirements of a beverage crate.

From granulate to reusable crate

The recycled granulate is processed in production in a similar way to conventional plastic. Precise control of the material properties is crucial here. Small amounts of additives are added to ensure consistent quality. These provide UV protection, colour stability and long-term resilience. The recycled content can be very high and, in practice, is close to complete recycling of the raw material. Typical features of such recycled beverage crates are:

• High proportion of recycled marine plastics
• Mechanical stability for continuous use
• Suitability for existing reusable systems
• Multiple recyclability over several decades

Sustainability in real operation

The ecological effect does not result from a single use, but from the sum of many cycles. Beverage crates often remain in use for fifty years or more. During this time, they are recycled several times and reprocessed into new crates. The use of marine plastics reinforces this effect, as waste from another system is permanently bound and put to good use. In practice, this means that a crate is not disposed of after its first life cycle, but serves as a raw material again. The material remains in the cycle and is recycled again and again. This approach significantly reduces the need for new plastic and lowers resource consumption in the beverage industry in the long term.

Schoeller Allibert's role in the beverage market

One supplier that is consistently pursuing this path is Schoeller Allibert. The company is one of Germany's leading players in the field of plastic beverage crates and transport packaging. For decades, it has been supplying breweries, mineral water producers and soft drink manufacturers with standardised reusable systems. Schoeller Allibert began early on to not only add recycled material, but also to establish it as a key component. The use of marine plastics marks a further step towards making existing products more sustainable without changing proven logistics structures. For bottlers and retailers, the crate remains functionally identical, while its ecological footprint is significantly improved.

Prospects for the reusable cycle

This development shows that sustainability in the beverage market is achieved less through radical system changes than through the further development of existing infrastructures. Beverage crates made from marine plastics are a good example of this. They take an established product and specifically change its material base. For companies such as Schoeller Allibert, this means taking responsibility along the entire value chain – from raw materials to production and recycling. For the industry as a whole, this creates an approach that can be scaled and has a real impact on resource conservation and waste prevention. In a market that is strongly characterised by reusability, it is precisely this type of innovation that can make a difference in the long term.