Throughout 2017, Mondi publicly advanced development of BarrierPack—a flexible packaging concept aimed at replacing non-recyclable multi-material pouches with a polyethylene-based structure suitable for demanding food applications. The work attracted attention because barrier performance had historically been the main reason converters and brand owners retained aluminum or PET layers in laminate stacks.
BarrierPack development focused on combining high-performance PE film layers with coatings and sealant technology that could survive retort, hot-fill, or ambient shelf conditions depending on the target SKU. Mondi positioned the platform for wet pet food, baby food, and other pouch formats where puncture resistance and seal integrity could not be compromised for recyclability messaging alone.
For flexo and converting lines, early BarrierPack trials highlighted practical constraints. Printers needed stable surface energy for ink adhesion on treated PE, while laminators had to manage sealant compatibility and minimal curl after lamination. Slitting and pouch-making partners reported that roll hardness and tension profiles differed from traditional PET/PE or OPP/PE structures—requiring recalibrated settings before high-speed VFFS run rates.
Retail and regulatory pressure in Europe accelerated interest. Supermarket buyers were beginning to score private-label suppliers on recyclability declarations, and the EU's broader circular economy agenda encouraged mono-material designs that could theoretically enter existing PE film recycling streams if collection improved.
Although the fully commercial BarrierPack Recyclable launch would follow in 2018, 2017 was the year the concept moved from R&D slides to pilot quantities on partner lines. Converters watching the project learned that recyclable flexible food packaging would not arrive as a drop-in resin swap—it would demand coordinated investment across print, lamination, and forming equipment tuned to new web behavior.