NatureWorks and IMA Coffee’s compostable coffee pods making progress

In Italy, announced April 27, 2021, NatureWorks and IMA Coffee’s joint strategic partnership accelerates on the first significant trial phase on K-Cup compatible compostable coffee pods.

Compatibility testing on capsules, filter, and top lid films are being performed at IMA Coffee Lab with the precise aim to identify and achieve optimum material sealing parameters and limits as well as a suitable set up of IMA packaging machineries to handle the pods successfully.

Tests are carried out under the supervision of IMA Coffee R&D team and in close and constant co-operation with NatureWorks specialists: dedicated tools are used to simulate filter and top lid films sealing phases and adjust parameters according to testing results.

The sophisticated microleakage detection testing performed at IMA Coffee Lab has given more than encouraging and optimistic results allowing a significant step forward in the process that will proceed thoroughly towards the following coffee extraction testing phase.

At NatureWorks, development of new single-stage thermoforming processes and capsule designs continues to produce precise capsules that meet IMA’s specifications for filling and sealing on their packaging machines.

NatureWorks has also constructed a custom Data Acquisition System for K-Cup compatible pods that is being used to understand and benchmark how differing capsule designs perform under various brewing conditions.