Innovation Zone

ThePackHub Innovation Zone Snapshot

Welcome to this week’s Innovation Zone snapshot from ThePackHub.
ThePackHub collates more than 100 new packaging innovations every month for our Innovation Zone platform. We now have 5,670 searchable initiatives listed. We have selected four new initiatives for you today.

More information on our Innovation Zone packaging database – https://www.thepackhub.com/the-innovation-zone/

Please forward to your packaging friends and colleagues to stay up to date with the latest packaging innovation news.  They can click here to subscribe.

Book on our next packaging webinar

Date: Wednesday, March 16, 2022
Time: 16:00 – 17:00 UK (10:00 -11:00 CT)

Join our webinar in partnership with Packaging World to learn:

• How emerging brands are disrupting their category with packaging that both appeals to consumers and is sustainable.
• How established CPGs are reducing materials and turning to post-consumer recycled plastics.
• Where bamboo and other bioplastics perform best in sustainable packaging efforts.
• Why it’s crucial to get moving with incremental change and how to communicate your efforts to your customers.

Register for free here: https://www.packworld.com/home/webinar/22043472/sustainable-packaging-today

We’d love to see you there!

NEW – Watch ThePackHub’s last webinar

Catch up on the latest sustainable packaging innovation trends with this whistle-stop tour of the latest initiatives. We cover many of the recent important in-market and developmental sustainable examples to inspire you and keep you up to speed.

We are joined by Mauro Cozzi CEO and co-founder of carbon footprint reduction experts Emitwise. Hosted by Paul Jenkins and Barrington Pamplin of ThePackHub.

Sustainable Packaging Innovations webinar from ThePackHub with Emitwise. Broadcast 24th February 2022.

Innovation & Design Stage – Powered by ThePackHub

ThePackHub is delighted to help curate content for the Innovation & Design Stage at the upcoming Packaging Innovations at NEC on 25th & 26th May. The stage will host discussions and debates to uncover the latest trends and innovations in design and product packaging.

Get inspired by thought leaders and begin to shape your future packs with discussions such as innovations driven by the packaging tax, the refill/reuse revolution, the importance of trend scanning and much more!

ThePackHub will present four sessions consisting of keynote speakers and case studies from leading brand owners, retailers and FMCG companies.

We’ll keep you updated on speaker announcements over the next few weeks and we can’t wait!

You can register your free place here.

#1 Fibre lids replace plastic for salad packaging range

Picadeli, based in Gothenburg Sweden, claim to be Europe’s leading in-store salad bar concept. They are introducing formed fibre lids to replace single-use plastic versions. The lids will be supplied by Finnish pulp and paper product manufacturer Stora Enso, and are made from their PureFiber material. The move to fibre-based lids will help Picadeli remove around 120 tonnes of single-use plastic waste annually. The carbon footprint of the PureFiber lid is reported to be up to 75% lower compared to alternative materials such as plastic or bagasse. PureFiber products are produced from wood-based formed fibre using green energy. They contain no plastic, no per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), or any other forever chemicals. The lids are reported to provide a good user experience and tightly seal the food inside. The new formed fibre lids will be available for consumers at Picadeli salad bars immediately.

 

#2 Deposit return scheme for reusable coffee cups starts UK trial

Multinational coffee chain Starbucks has launched a trial scheme where customers can borrow returnable cups. The scheme will be trialled in London’s Canary Wharf and all stores in the city of Geneva. It will enable customers to request a reusable cup at the till for a £1 deposit fee, which customers will be reimbursed when the cup is returned to a Starbucks store. Each cup has an identifying number, meaning that Starbucks staff can scan them and return the fee to the customer once they are finished. Cups returned will be sanitised in-store ready for reuse. This means customers do not need to remember to bring their own reusable cup from home. Research has revealed that 36% of UK coffee drinkers don’t use a reusable cup every time they buy a drink on the go because they forget to bring their reusable cup. The trials in Canary Wharf and Geneva will last for two months.

More info in The Innovation Zone.

#3 Pallets made from waste-based raw material introduced

Pepsico Brazil is partnering with UBQ, an Israeli cleantech startup company that converts household waste into a bio-based thermoplastic composite. Their UBQ branded product is created using 100% unsorted municipal solid waste, including mixed plastics, paper, cardboard, and organics and is suitable to substitute conventional polymers in various durable applications. More than 739kg of this mixed waste will be redirected from landfills, and looped back into the material as a valuable resource. Part of this mixed waste will contain recycled PP (polypropylene) resin and recycled BOPP (biaxially oriented polypropylene), a plastic film used in the company’s snack packaging. This material will be used in the manufacture of 830 ecological pallets for use in two of the company’s logistics centres. The pallets are being developed by PepsiCo’s partner Ecoboxes Embalagens Plásticas, which specialises in solutions focused on sustainability and circular economy.

More info in The Innovation Zone.

#4 Fibre-based packaging for olive oil launched

Aeons is an organic Greek olive oil producer that takes a holistic approach to sustainability. They have now moved their organic extra virgin olive oil to a paper-based recycled board bottle. The new bottle weighs 83g, five times less than a comparable glass bottle, while also having a carbon footprint six times smaller. The bottle, supplied by UK packaging manufacturer Frugalpac, is made from 94% recyclable board and has up to 77% less plastic than a comparable plastic bottle. The paper-based bottle consists of a paper sleeve with a food grade foil inner liner. The paper-based element of the bottle is made from recycled board, which can be easily separated from the food grade liner, and both can be recycled in their respective recycling streams and do not have to go to landfill. The oil is retailed in a 750ml bottle and is now available in the German market, being imported by Taste Greece.

 

Packaging question of the week

Have often do you use an in-store refill system? Vote and comment on LinkedIn now. 

Last week, 63% are recycling more now than they were 12 months ago.

ThePackHub Ltd 3 Redlands Court, Chapel Lane, Shotteswell, Banbury, OX17 1JB . Tel: 0118 963 9990 . Email us >