SoylentNews

Phoenix666 [soylentnews.org] writes:

The 'natural branding' process [treehugger.com] marks the outermost layer of peel without using ink or affecting taste and shelf life.

Plastic produce stickers might be a thing of the past if Swedish supermarket ICA has its way. The chain, with more than 1,300 stores across Sweden, began experimenting last December with ‘natural branding,’ a process that imprints a fruit or vegetable peel with its name, country of origin, and code number using a laser. The low-energy, carbon dioxide laser burns away the first layer of pigment to a clearly legible result that uses no ink or additional products. It is a superficial, contact-free method that does not affect taste or shelf life.

This innovation is welcome news for shoppers familiar with the irritation of having to pick stickers off while washing produce prior to eating. Especially for those striving to reduce plastic waste, it’s highly annoying to have to pick off stickers in the produce aisle and placate grumpy cashiers who don’t like looking up produce codes.

No more annoying plastic stickers.

Original Submission