Paper Packaging Offers Unrivalled Product Protection

The UK and the European Commission’s Waste Hierarchies both give highest priority to the prevention of waste.[1, 2] However, brand owners and manufacturers must ensure the elimination or reduction of packaging does not risk damaging or shortening the life of the product.

On average, ten times more resources (materials, energy and water) are invested in products compared with the resources used to produce their packaging.

Food and Drink Federation, 2017

The paper packaging industry has been at the forefront of developing solutions that maximise product protection whilst minimising the environmental impacts of the packaging itself.

Paper is an incredibly versatile material that can be formulated in a multitude of ways to alter its strength and even stretch to meet the requirements of the most demanding packaging applications. There are a number of great examples of innovative paper-based packaging applications that do not compromise product protection.

In Europe, 62% of folding cartons produced are used to package food.

Pro Carton, 2021

Cartonboard packaging adds value to a product, increasing its overall resource efficiency through reducing food waste. By protecting food and reducing food waste, cartons contribute to more sustainable consumption and benefit society by making our modern, convenience-driven lifestyles possible.

The European beverage carton industry is committed to a 70% recycling rate by 2030.

Alliance for Beverage Cartons & The Environment

Beverage cartons, made from 75% renewable material on average, can directly substitute plastic bottles and glass bottles, offering a low carbon solution. In 2019, 51%* of beverage cartons were recycled in Europe. However, the industry has set an ambitious 2030 commitment that 90% of all beverage cartons are collected for recycling and at least 70% of all beverage cartons are recycled.[3]

The dramatic rise in e-commerce amid movement restrictions induced by Covid-19 increased online retail sales’ share of total retail sales from 16% to 19% in 2020.[4]

Corrugated boxes used for transit packaging have a great story to tell. The rigid yet lightweight nature of multi-layered corrugated boxes helps to make the material highly resistant to vertical compression, providing a strength-to-weight ratio that is totally unique. In addition to this ingenious construction that provides remarkable shock absorption qualities, corrugated boxes also offer excellent thermal insulation[5], whilst also reducing costs in production and transit relative to other rigid materials.

A new innovation that is gaining traction in e-commerce is paper mailing bags. These robust, lightweight and tear-resistant bags provide an ideal alternative to plastic bags. Paper e-commerce bags offer comparable functionality to plastic, but are easy to recycle through home collection systems and, according to studies, can have a lower carbon footprint than virgin and recycled PE (polythene) bags.[6]

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