Wholesale Distributors of Plastic Bottles, Caps, Jars & Accessories
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HDPE Plastic

What is HDPE plastic?

Natural HDPE is a translucent type of plastic which allows you to see your product level but is matte in finish. It’s a lighter, durable and cost-effective alternative to glass. All types of HDPE offer good moisture and vapour barrier qualities and are chemically inert.

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What does HDPE stand for?

High Density Polyethylene, commonly shortened to HDPE, is a thermoplastic polymer and is sometimes called polythene when used for HDPE pipes. As one of the most versatile plastics it’s used in a variety of packaging and commercial applications having an outstanding tensile strength and large strength to density ratio.

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What is HDPE plastic used for?

HDPE is an ideal material for food and beverage containers due to its lightweight and high strength properties. This allows millions of products to be produced and transported in an economical manner like milk jugs and fresh juice.

Unaffected by common chemicals, solvents and acids, HDPE is also used for personal care products, laundry detergents, shampoo and conditioner, oils, cleaning products, car cleaning products, creams, lotions, soaps, paints and glue.

Commercially HDPE is a type of plastic that offers a full range of marketing opportunities, with the option to print directly onto the material. Innovative use of blow moulding techniques offer a range of plastic bottle shapes that allow brands to stand out on the shelf.As more recycled HDPE is introduced into the market, brands can also fulfil their green credentials without radically changing their designs.

The UV and impact resistant properties of HDPE make it an ideal use for toy manufacturers ensuring durability and that their products' vibrant colours are not affected by the sun’s damaging and discolouring rays.

HDPE is also weather resistant to mould, mildew, rotting and naturally occurring chemicals found in soil so is often used in the manufacture of recycling bins and HDPE pipes.

Sustainability

HDPE plastic does not give off any harmful fumes into the environment making it the most environmentally stable of all plastics. Manufacturing HDPE plastics requires only a fraction of the energy required to produce steel from iron ore. It’s strength to weight ratio allows manufacturers to transport more products with less packaging material therefore reducing fuel consumption.

Recycling

HDPE is non-biodegradable so it is imperative that containers are recycled and used again. It is accepted at most recycling centres across the globe and is collected in the UK via our council curbside programs. It is commercially recycled by thorough washing and re-melting into recycled granules which can be used for new products.

It is more cost efficient to produce recycled HDPE than it is to manufacture virgin plastic, so recycling can actually reduce the cost of HDPE products. Recycled HDPE is often used to make things like piping, plastic lumber and rope. It will often be a darker colour like brown or black to ensure consistency across the plastic.

HDPE is commonly recycled and has the number "2" as its resin identification code inside the universal recycling symbol. It can be made into rope, piping, toys and recycling bins!

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HDPE Packaging

At The Plastic Bottles Company we stock a wide range of caps and accessories to complement our HDPE bottles. These include caps with; a wad providing extra leak-proofing, child resistance for safety, tamper evidence, a twist top, flip top, disc top and many more. HDPE bottles are also suitable for use with mini sprays, atomisers, sponge applicators, droppers, and are available in a variety of colours.

We have a number of bottles, trigger bottles and jerrycans in our shop made from recycled HDPE making them exempt from the plastic tax (applicable from April 2022).

See our shop for our full range of HDPE products

Bottle 50ml Boston Round HDPE Black 20mm 30% PCR

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Bottle 1000ml Swipe HDPE Natural 28mm

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Jerrycan 5000ml Tamper Evident HDPE Natural 38mm

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What is the Plastic Tax?

The Government has released a white paper detailing their efforts to combat virgin plastic use. This has resulted in the introduction of a plastic tax that will come into effect in April 2022. Suppliers and purchasers will be exempt from this tax if the recycled content for each product is 30% or more. Read more on our blog.

We have been working with our customers and suppliers to offer a wide range of recyclable and biodegradable plastics exempt from the Plastic Packaging Tax. Contact us to learn more and how you can make the switch.

Here to help!

If you need advice or are looking for a particular bottle or container that's not on the website, just ask. Even if we don't stock it we may be able to source it for you.

Telephone: (+44) 01229 588877 or 588468
© The Plastic Bottles Company 2018 - 2024. All rights reserved. GJD Solutions Limited t/a The Plastic Bottles Company, Unit 1F Cross Lane, Ulverston, Cumbria, LA12 9DQ. Registration: 07515596.