Plastic packaging producer in the US, Amcor Rigid Plastics is set to develop its polyethylene terephthalate (PET) wine bottles with both synthetic and natural corks. The addition of corks to the PET wine bottles makes them look like traditional glass wine bottles.

Amcor market development manager Yi Jiang said the corks maintain the traditional wine experience and can ensure smooth conversion to PET on the customer's filling line with minimal changes, plasticstoday.com reported.

The gas barrier of wine bottles is applied using a glass-like material, the Plasmax plasma coating that seals the container from the inside to protect the contents from oxidation and depending on the size, the PET bottles with the coating offer a one-to-two year shelf life for wine.

Plasmax, the ultra thin, transparent material, which is less than 100nm is an FDA-compliant enhanced passive barrier for oxygen-sensitive products and resists cracking, abrasion, and delamination. The barrier does not limit the storage time for empty bottles and will not degrade over time.

During the recycling process, the coating is easily removed and does not contaminate the system, the company said.

Amcor, which already has commercial sales of wine bottles blow moulded of PET said its PET wine bottle with corks is still in the development stage and based on development progress and market demand the launch date will be determined.