The evolution of freshness: preserve without wasting

Fabbri Group is fully involved in the development of the sustainability of its packaging.

We are convinced that the packaging industry plays a key role in environment protection, in the protection of the health of the final consumer and in preventing food waste. Our motto, value and ideal, has always been "preserve without wasting".

We work with the processors of fresh products, and at the retail end, with solutions that cover all food sectors (meat, fruit, vegetables, dairy, fish, gastronomy…). For this reason every day we offer safe products for a satisfactory food storage, investing in innovative solutions aimed at continuous improvement in terms of sustainability performance.

Our commitment is focused on different ways

Research and Development

We invest about 5% of our annual turnover in research and development with the objectives of: 

  • Produce thinner and lighter films with equal performance in food preservation and machinability
  • Reducing dependence on non-renewable sources and introducing materials from renewable sources
  • Developing energy-efficient packaging machines designed to reduce film consumption
  • Encourage recovery and recycling, where possible taking into account also the strict rules applicable to food contact
  • In general, develop sustainable products according to the main international innovation criteria

Development of bioplastic films

Adhering to the principles outlined by the EU in the recent “Strategy on Plastics”, Fabbri Group, with its focus on innovation and waste reduction, decided to adopt an eco-friendly strategy to reduce plastic pollution, investing in compostable solutions.

Our film portfolio has recently been enriched with two new solutions that allow the food industry and retail to meet the growing demand for sustainability by the market:

  • BIOBASED STAR FILM: Extensible film derived for more than 30% from renewable raw materials of plant origin and certified “OK Biobased®” by TÜV Austria
  • NATURE FRESH: The first film with home compostability certification (TÜV Austria) and industrial compostability certification (TÜV Austria, Dincertco for the Seedling brand of European Bioplastics, CIC – Italian Consortium of Composters) according to Standard EN 13432 for automatic packaging, also suitable for manual packaging.
    Nature Fresh is also certified compostable in North America according to the ASTM D6400 standard (commercial compostability certification issued by the Biodegradable Products Institute ‘BPI’).
    Nature Fresh solves, at the root of the problem, this issue of used film that has been contaminated by food, as this cannot be recycled and will ultimately end up in landfill or an incinerator. With Nature Fresh this does not happen, because the film can be composted together with the food itself that had previously wrapped and protected.

Synergy Film-Machines

Fabbri Group is the only company in the sector to produce both packaging machines and food films, neutral and printed.

Fabbri Group offers versatile and complete packaging solutions suitable for all necessities: productive, economical and with a lower environmental impact.

Leader in the packaging system, Fabbri Group is chosen as a supplier for its competence and proactivity by a large portfolio of highly loyal customers, who operate in an evolving market and appreciate its innovative packaging solutions and competent technical assistance.

Fabbri Group automatic wrapping machines were born and have been optimized for the use of stretch films with the following advantages:

  • Higher production yield even in “limit” packaging situations, such as high speed, important ironing, frequent tray size changes or product weight wrapped
  • Drastic reduction of extraordinary and ordinary maintenance work on packaging machines, with important consequences, such as savings in terms of spare parts, the reduction of waste from maintenance activities and the reduced environmental impact linked to the mobility of technicians

The “Elixa” packaging system, implemented by us and patented in its time, is still one of the most popular packaging systems for fresh food products and ensures the maximum exploitation of the extensibility of the film, for maximum possible savings in consumable material.

In addition, both our wrapping machines and our tray-sealing machines (MAP packaging, skin, extra-skin…) are able to work with trays or other types of support in traditional or compostable materials.

Recycling

Fabbri Group has always strived to limit the environmental impact of its film, maintaining a high attention also to the raw materials used and internal recycling. Fabbri Group recovers a significant part of its production waste within the same production process relying on external partners specialized for the recycling of the part not recoverable internally.

In Italy, we are a member of CONAI (National Packaging Consortium) with the objective of recovering and recycling packaging materials as much as possible. We are also a member of BIOREPACK (National Consortium for the organic recycling of biodegradable and compostable plastic packaging), the new consortium of reference for producers of compostable packaging always with the aim of pursuing the environmental objectives defined for this specific sector.

In Europe, we work with various national consortia for packaging, for the collection, recycling and recovery of plastic packaging and for the organic recycling of biodegradable and compostable plastic packaging.

Environment, Health and Safety Certifications

  • ISO 14001:2015 – Environmental Management System
    We took the decision in 2002 to ISO 14001 certify the chemical factory of film production in Vignola since 2002, undertaking a process of strict control on compliance with the legal requirements applicable to the site as well as the progressive improvement of environmental impact performance when sustainability issues still did not receive all the attention they receive today from politics, institutions, media, companies and final consumers.
    Following this, all our production plants have adhered to the same certification scheme.. Our “Environmental Policy” guides us in the application and maintenance of the Environmental Management System and in the continuous improvement of our impact performance and our products
  • EMAS (Regulation UE 2018/2026)
    Community and voluntary eco-management and audit scheme, to which companies and organisations may voluntarily subscribe in order to assess and improve their environmental efficiency. As required by the Regulation, in order to make known to all interested third parties its environmental performance, Gruppo Fabbri Vignola S.p.A. draws up its annual “Environmental Declaration” available on request.
  • UNI ISO 45001:2018 – Occupational Health and Safety Management System
    With continuous monitoring and analysis of any non-conformities, accidents and missed accidents and the level of compliance with the constantly evolving mandatory legislation, The Company aims to continuously improve its performance in the field of health and safety at work to protect its employees and employees.

Collaborations and partnerships

Since 2019, Fabbri Group and Legambiente – the most important environmentalist association in Italy – have formed a partnership that continues today on the occasion of forums, events or conferences dedicated to environmental sustainability.

We also collaborate with Treedom in the “Aurea Silva – Fabbri 4 Planet” reforestation project, with 3Bee in the “Bee Way – Fabbri 4 Planet” bee protection project,  and with LifeGate in the “Zero Impact Web” internet project.

 

Aurea Silva – Fabbri 4 Planet

 

Although Fabbri Group is already active from the point of view of proper environmental management and pollution prevention, in 2022 it also decided to join the Operation Clean Sweep® (OCS) Programme, aimed at preventing marine pollution by microplastics, in order to improve its performance by drawing on the best sustainability practices applicable to its sector.

 

Local projects

We support local environmental and social projects through

  • Donations
  • Communications (conferences, events, speeches, etc.) to educate and encourage care for sustainability and individuals.