Thinner · Tougher · Tighter

Less plastic. Stronger film. Better crops.

Solar Shrink® is a patented agricultural mulch film that does the same job as conventional film using up to 33% less plastic — shrinking drum-tight to the bed in sunlight, then lifting clean at season end for recycling.

−33%Less plastic per job (screening LCA)
up to 3×Breaking strength & puncture resistance
up to 50%Thinner than conventional film
−33%Lower carbon & water footprint
The Solar Shrink advantage

Engineered to do more with less

Solar Shrink isn't down-gauged conventional film. Custom machinery physically modifies the film's molecular structure — so it can be thinner and lighter without giving up the performance growers rely on.

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Shrinks in sunlight

The sheet shrinks permanently in sunshine and conforms to the contours of the bed — drum-tight, with no flapping, even on rough ground.

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Up to 3× stronger

Higher breaking strength and puncture resistance, retained through the season thanks to premium polymers and chemical-resistant UV stabilisers.

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Up to 50% thinner

Less weight of plastic per foot means lower cost, longer rolls, fewer roll-change stoppages — and far less plastic to dispose of.

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Lifts clean for recycling

Strength lets the film be machine-lifted intact at season end, leaving less plastic in the soil and producing a cleaner, single-polymer recycling stream.

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Better soil heat & moisture

Tight bed contact improves heat transfer and traps moisture, supporting earlier, more uniform crop establishment.

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Lower inputs

No billowing means less water and fertiliser loss, fewer weeds and less seedling damage from rubbing plastic — a better root-zone environment.

Independent life-cycle analysis

A measurably lighter footprint

A screening LCA (COMPASS 2023.3, ISO 14040 methodology) compared Solar Shrink Ultra against 1.5 mil conventional film for the same field job. Using ~33% less plastic, every impact category fell by about a third.

−33%Carbon footprint (10.6 kg CO₂e saved per modelled job)
−33%Fossil fuel use (≈0.045 barrels of oil)
−33%Water consumption (≈2,118 gallons)
−33%Freshwater eutrophication

Explore the full results

Validation

Backed by science, patents and growers

"Your poly film was extremely easy to place on a raised bed with my mulch layer and, with heat from the sun, it shrank and was hugging the raised bed the entire growing season. It never billowed compared to other non-degradable plastic mulch products. The pumpkin plants growing on the film were very vigorous and produced many pumpkins." Prof. Michael OrzolekAuthor, “A Guide to the Manufacture, Performance, and Potential of Plastics in Agriculture” (2017)
  • Granted patents: US 11,197,433 and WO2017193155A1 — "solar-reactive mulch film".
  • Screening LCA conducted by Charter Next Generation (COMPASS 2023.3, ISO 14040 methodology).
  • Referenced in independent university research on plastic mulch (Utah State, Michigan State).
  • Manufactured and distributed at commercial scale across the US, Europe, the Middle East, Africa and Australia.
About the technology & partners
A full product range

The same options, a fraction of the plastic

Solar Shrink is available in the colours and configurations growers already use — including the highest-barrier Totally Impermeable Film (TIF) on the market.

Black
Standard

The reduced polymer volume keeps Solar Shrink competitive on price while cutting plastic use.

Black / White
Cooling

Reflects light to help cool the bed in warm-climate production.

TIF
Fumigation

The highest barrier properties of any competitive brand — even at least 20% thinner.

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See what Solar Shrink saves on your farm

Use the calculator to estimate the plastic, carbon and water you'd save by switching — based on your own film volumes.

Open the savings calculator