Sinclair showcases compostable fruit labels at Fruit Logistica

Sinclair presented a timelapse showcase of its compostable fruit labels at last week’s Fruit Logistica. The company said it had received a lot of interest in its Sinclair-T55 since launching it with the Zespri Group at Fruit Attraction in October 2024, as the industry looks to adopt environmentally conscious packaging solutions.

The timelapse video shows the certified compostable fruit labels on banana skin, kiwifruit skin, apple skin, and organic skin in home composting conditions. They can be seen to break down and biodegrade to become part of usable, soil-enriching compost within 365 days (or sooner).

“Fruit labels have delivered added value for retailers, branders, and consumers for over 40 years,” Sinclair said. “The fruit label is a compact and minimised packaging solution that provides essential point-of-sale product information for consumers and retailers.

“As part of the marketing mix, it allows brands to promote fresh produce characteristics and build a relationship with consumers. For retailers, the label ensures accurate checkout - price and produce type - as well as traceability.

“The fruit label’s ability to differentiate produce allows brands to build relationships with consumers on origin, variety, taste, and quality, all key buying triggers. All of this is possible with Sinclair - T55, a certified compostable packaging solution that can be as small as 18x10mm and weigh as little as 9.3g per square metre, and at the end of life, contributes to soil-enriching compost.”

According to the company, the Sinclair-T55 fruit label is food-safe, certified compostable, and complies with several leading composting standards. The label meets the EU-wide industrial composting standard EN 13432, as well as the French and Australian home composting standards, NFT 51-800 and AS 5810, respectively.

The label has achieved DIN Certco and UV Austria certification for both industrial and home composting, along with the ABA certification for home composting.

“As the first dual-certified home and industrial fruit label in the industry, it is designed to meet the demands of automatic, high-speed application in packinghouses,” Sinclair said.

“With labelling speeds of up to 720 fruit per minute, humidity and water present, plus wide temperature variances, label conformity and adhesion to fresh produce is key. The new Sinclair T55 label meets these challenges with performance equivalent to conventional PE/PP labels or, on some produce types, surpassing it.”