All Sustainability articles
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ArticlePackaging Europe’s most popular stories from 2024
As 2024 draws to a close, we’re spotlighting this year’s most influential stories in packaging—from the conclusion of the PPWR process to major brand owners changing their sustainability objectives.. Take a look at our roundup for a comprehensive review of the developments that shaped the industry over the past 12 months.
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ArticleSeaCube decarbonizes logistics with reefer leases and battery-powered gensets
SeaCube seeks to reduce emissions in refrigerated transport via reefer leases – powered by Greensee’s AI-driven CO2 emissions reporting technology – and battery-powered container gensets tested alongside Thermo King and CMA CGM.
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ArticleHow to make your Christmas gift wrapping sustainable
It’s that time of year again, when many of us are busy searching for the perfect Christmas gifts – and for the right material to wrap them in. Gift wrapping ties in with many of the wider challenges the packaging industry faces, particularly around recyclability, consumer behaviour and demand for alternatives to traditional wrapping paper. Frances Butler takes a closer look at this topic within the UK, including the availability of recyclable wrapping paper, how to know whether wrapping paper is recyclable or not, and alternatives such as reusable wrappings.
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ArticleCosmetics gifted in paperboard advent calendar by Metsä Board and partners
Lumene, Metsä Board, and Van Genechten have developed a ‘multi-dimensional’ advent calendar for cosmetic products, which is inspired by Nordic scenery and designed to be recycled in paperboard waste streams at end-of-life.
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ArticleHow consumers can (and do) consider sustainability in Christmas gift-giving
As an ALPLA survey indicates that 64% of Americans avoid over-packaged Christmas gifts, 87% reuse wrapping paper and gift bags, and 60% recycle opened packaging, DS Smith advises consumers to use recycled wrapping paper this year – and to scrunch unwrapped paper to gauge its recyclability.
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ArticleToppan sets sights on the Americas as it acquires Sonoco’s TFP business
Toppan Holdings Inc. is acquiring Sonoco’s Thermoformed & Flexible Packaging business with the intent to expand its sustainable packaging business into the Americas.
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ArticleMondi mill upgrades to lower emissions and bolster operations in 2025
From the first quarter of 2025, Mondi expects to lower nitrogen oxide emissions by up to 10%, greenhouse gas emissions by over 20%, and gas consumption by about 25% at its fine paper mills in Neusiedler, which have been upgraded under a €20 million investment.
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ArticleRe-Gen uses Polytag watermarks to track packaging among mixed waste recycling
Re-Gen is utilizing Polytag’s watermarking technology to accurately count individual items of packaging among the 250,000 tonnes of mixed household waste recycled at its Newry material recovery facility every year.
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ArticleDriving packaging sustainability forward in 2025
Unfortunately, my wrap-up of 2024 is not an especially cheerful one. Just as we close out the year with little to no significant progress made at COP25 or INC-5, we enter a new one under various governmental powers for whom sustainability is not a priority.
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ArticleRegulate imports and manage energy costs, plastics industry implores the EU
As Europe’s share of global plastics production is feared to have halved over 20 years, Plastics Recyclers Europe is among the stakeholders calling for the European Union to regulate its virgin and recycled plastic imports and address high energy costs.
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ArticleFresh and recycled fibres combined in Stora Enso’s bag and mailer paper
Stora Enso is blending fresh and recycled fibres into its new Optima RF paper, which is intended to help retail and e-commerce companies meet internal and legislative sustainability goals.
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PodcastThe next steps for the Global Plastic Treaty – with WWF’s Eirik Lindebjerg
Following the conclusion of INC-5 in Busan last month, we are revisiting the topic of the Global Plastics Treaty. Victoria Hattersley spoke with Eirik Lindebjerg, Global Plastic Policy Lead at WWF, about what we can expect in the coming months and which questions still urgently need to be addressed.
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ArticleElaborados Naturales packs potato products in ovenable paperboard tray
Elaborados Naturales has adopted Graphic Packaging International’s hermetically sealed paperboard tray – containing less than 10% plastic and facilitating recyclability without requiring the barrier liner to be removed – for its refrigerated potato products in Spain.
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ArticleLOG applies Dow resins to drug bottles as gas, moisture and oxygen barriers
Utilizing pharma-grade resins powered by Dow, LOG Pharma Primary Packaging’s barrier line claims to lower the weight of pharmaceutical bottles by up to 30% without sacrificing their water vapour transmission rate.
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ArticlePackaging and Packaging Waste Regulation formally adopted by EU Council
The European Council has formally adopted the Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation, meaning it will now enter into force in EU law.
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ArticleCompostable and recyclable Christmas cups revealed by Celebration Packaging
In honour of the festive season, Celebration Packaging has added red and green double-wall hot drink cups to its renewable food and drinks packaging lineup, highlighting their compostability or recyclability at end-of-life.
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ArticleLAM’ON to boost compostable, biobased films with strategic investment
Following a strategic investment from Eleven Ventures and Citibank managing director Grigoriy Ananiev, LAM’ON plans to boost its market presence and upscale its biobased, compostable laminating and packaging films.
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ArticleMono-PET blister tray certified as recyclable by Petcore
Liveo Research’s One-Material Blister made of PET has been certified as recyclable by Petcore Europe’s Tray Circularity Evaluation Platform.
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ArticleHow can the industry adapt to the PPWR?
Our industry faces a dilemma: while packaging is still seen as a “silent seller”, new EU rules promote minimal, necessary packaging. How can businesses embrace this change and adapt to new conditions? Anna Perlina, sustainable packaging consultant at Integrity Solutions, offers a potential solution.
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ArticleUnilever’s take on INC-5 – and where treaty negotiations need to go
After the events of INC-5, Ed Shepherd, senior global sustainability manager at Unilever, commends the widespread consensus over a high-ambition Global Plastics Treaty that restricts new production and harmful substances – yet he warns of gaps in the current text and the ongoing risk of ‘endless negotiations’.