The company marked the milestone at its 2026 World Sales Meeting, which brought together distributors from 28 countries. Its VpCI®-126 films and bags now contain at least 20% recycled material.
Cortec® Corporation has entered its 50th
year of operation. Founded in Minnesota in October 1977 by Boris Miksic, who remains CEO, the company has built a distribution network spanning 113 countries and now operates in four countries across three continents.
Cortec’s work in corrosion prevention has centred on vapour phase corrosion inhibitors (VpCI®), which it incorporates into packaging to protect metal components during storage and transport. The company has also developed water-based anticorrosion coatings, which typically have a lower volatile organic compound content than solvent-based alternatives. Cortec reports more than 60 patents since its founding.
Cortec began incorporating recycled material into its VpCI® films in the 1990s. It now specifies a minimum recycled content of 20% across its VpCI®-126 films and bags to help customers meet recycled-content requirements in their markets.
The company has also developed compostable versions of its VpCI® films and papers, as well as compostable stretch and shrink films. Its work with bio-based materials includes products certified under the US Department of Agriculture’s BioPreferred® programme, which Cortec joined in the early 2010s.
In 2010, Cortec expanded into biotechnology with the acquisition of Bionetix® International, whose products serve applications including waste treatment and environmental clean-up.