From Plastic Polyliner to Fibre: Rethinking Fresh Produce Transport Packaging
Replacing the plastic inside the box
Across global fresh produce supply chains, millions of transport boxes rely on single-use fossil-plastic polyliners to help manage moisture loss and protect fruit during storage and distribution.
Salty asked a simple question:
Could we replace the plastic liner with fibre while still providing the functionality the fruit needs?
Our Polyliner Replacement uses our award winning specialist bio-coated fibre technology to create a functional paper-based insert designed to replace conventional PE and LLDPE plastic polyliners inside existing fresh produce transport boxes.
Designed Around the Fruit
Fresh produce continues to respire after harvest. During extended cool-chain storage and transportation, controlling moisture loss and gas exchange can be critical to maintaining fruit quality, weight and reducing shrivel.
That's why simply removing the plastic isn't always the answer.
Salty's technology allows the barrier properties of fibre to be engineered around the physiological requirements of the produce, including moisture and gas transmission.
The result is a fibre insert that can provide the functionality traditionally delivered by a plastic polyliner while working within existing transport packaging systems.
Protect the fruit. Replace the polyliner. Recover the fibre.
A Fibre Solution for Existing Boxes
One of the key advantages of the Polyliner Replacement is its simplicity.
Rather than requiring businesses to completely redesign their existing transport box, the bio-coated fibre insert provides a pathway to replace the fossil-plastic component inside the existing packaging system.
This creates an opportunity for growers, packhouses and exporters to reduce significant volumes of soft plastic across high-volume fresh produce supply chains.
Our bio-coated fibre technology is made with no added PFAS and has been developed with fibre recovery and repulpability in mind.
Supporting the Transition Away from Plastic
Changing packaging regulation and increasing ESG, Scope 3 and circularity requirements are putting greater focus on materials used throughout the supply chain — not just the packaging consumers see on supermarket shelves.
For fresh produce businesses, this means looking inside the transport box too.
Salty's Polyliner Replacement provides another pathway for organisations looking to reduce their dependence on fossil-based plastic while continuing to protect valuable produce.
Developed for Real Fresh Produce Supply Chains
Salty's bio-coated fibre technology has been developed specifically around the challenges of fresh produce storage and transportation.
The Polyliner Replacement demonstrates how functional coatings can enable paper and fibre to move into applications traditionally dependent on plastic — without overlooking the reason that plastic was originally there.
Don't just remove the plastic. Replace the function it performs.
Commercially Available Technology
Salty's bio-coated fibre Polyliner Replacement technology is commercially available and can be developed around different produce, box formats, barrier requirements and supply chains.
Alongside our Linerless Box and certified AS5810 Home Compostable Polyliner, it provides businesses with another practical pathway for addressing fossil-plastic polyliners:
Remove it. Replace it with fibre. Or replace it with certified home compostable material.
The opportunity extends far beyond one box.
Across millions of fresh produce cartons, replacing a single fossil-plastic polyliner in every box has the potential to remove significant volumes of plastic from global supply chains.
Turning off the plastic tap without turning off packaging performance.
Interested in replacing fossil-plastic polyliners with bio-coated fibre? Contact Salty to discuss your produce, existing transport box and supply-chain requirements.