February 20, 2026 14:59

A label-free polylactic acid (PLA) bottle—where the label is replaced by embossed logos and text—developed jointly by TotalEnergies Corbion and Sansu (i’m eco) using Luminy PLA supplied by the French group, is ready to make its debut on the South Korean market.

Designed to be recovered within a closed-loop scheme created by the two partners and then sent to depolymerization, the bottle also eliminates the label and, consequently, the additional operations required to remove it—supporting cleaner material streams and higher-quality recycled output.

Once collected, the bottles are pre-treated and chemically recycled via hydrolysis, a process that breaks PLA down into its original building block—the lactic acid monomer—which is then reused to produce new recycled Luminy PLA (rPLA) with consistent performance and quality.
The recycling route was validated four years ago, before the decision to bring the bottles to market.

The new PLA bottle is also compatible with organic recycling, where dedicated industrial composting infrastructure is available.

“As markets increasingly focus on recyclability, carbon performance, and consumer acceptance, this project demonstrates the potential of PLA-based solutions to meet functional requirements while supporting broader circular economy objectives—without compromising brand recognition or industrial performance,” said Hao Ding, Global Marketing Director at TotalEnergies Corbion.

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