Tetra Pak is investing €60 million into a pilot plant for its paper-based barrier technologies, which are thought to unlock 80% paper content and 92% renewable content in a single aseptic carton.
The plant will be built in Lund, Sweden – a location chosen for its existing ties to research and material development, the opportunity to collaborate with Lund University, and access to the MAX IV Laboratory’s testing capabilities.
Tetra Pak’s facility is hoped to give customers more insight into the solution’s manufacturing process, from creating the barrier and producing the packaging material to combining the components into a filled package.
Reportedly, Tetra Pak’s paper-based barrier increases the paper content in food and beverage cartons to approximately 80%. When combined with plant-based polymers, it is thought to achieve up to 92% renewable content in a single carton and reduce its carbon footprint by up to 43%.
Removing aluminium foil from a carton’s material structure is also thought to maximize the recovery of paper content during the recycling process, giving manufacturers access to high-quality fibre and non-fibre fractions.
Tetra Pak plans to invest approximately €100 million into the development of sustainability-minded packaging solutions by 2030.
“By expanding our facilities and strengthening strategic partnerships, we aim to make our innovative paper-based barrier accessible to more customers, accelerating their transition to sustainable packaging materials,” said Joakim Tuvesson, vice president Materials & Package at Tetra Pak. “We look forward to starting production and welcoming first customers to the new pilot plant in the first quarter of 2027.”
Tetra Pak has worked with various partners to introduce paper-based barriers to their packaging formats; these include aseptic beverage cartons from Nissha Metallizing Solutions and juice packaging from García Carrión.
In other news, SIG previously announced the commercial launch of its SIG Terra Alu-free + Full barrier for multi-serve aseptic cartons. Designed to avoid aluminium layers, this solution is thought to cut the cartons’ carbon footprint by up to 61% and help products maintain a twelve-month shelf life.
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