Carlsberg has unveiled two prototypes for what they’re claiming is the first ever paper beer bottle. Made with sustainable and recyclable wood fibres, the liquid containing vessel features an “inner barrier” allowing the bottle to hold beer. The difference between the two are rather technical, one bottle uses a thin recycled PET polymer film barrier, while the other has a bio-based PEF polymer film barrier.
The paper beer bottles form one part of the Danish beer giant’s Together Towards Zero initiative. The company’s goal is to reach zero carbon emissions and a 30% reduction in its “full-value-chain carbon footprint” by 2030.
Carlsberg launched the project back in 2015 and has been working alongside EcoXpac, BillerudKorsnäs and post-doctoral researchers from the Technical University of Denmark. This collaboration has resulted in the creation of paper bottle company Paboco, a joint venture between BillerudKorsnäs and bottle manufacturing specialist ALPLA. Other companies working the the paper bottle making company include Absolut, Coca-Cola and L’Oréal.
Carlsberg has been on the eco-friendly train for awhile now, and last year took a number of steps towards sustainability, including recycled shrink film, greener label ink and Snap Pack, which replaces the plastic packaging around its six-pack cans.
Speaking about the paper beer bottles, Myriam Shingleton, vice president group development at Carlsberg Group, said, “We continue to innovate across all our packaging formats, and we are pleased with the progress we’ve made on the Green Fibre Bottle so far. While we are not completely there yet, the two prototypes are an important step towards realising our ultimate ambition of bringing this breakthrough to market. Innovation takes time and we will continue to collaborate with leading experts in order to overcome remaining technical challenges, just as we did with our plastic-reducing Snap Pack.”
“The work with our partners since 2015 on the Green Fibre Bottle illustrates that this kind of innovation can happen when we work together. We’re delighted that other like-minded companies have now joined us as part of Paboco’s paper bottle community. Partnerships such as these, ones that are united by a desire to create sustainable innovations, are the best way to bring about real change.”
It seems that even beer companies are hopping on the eco-friendly bandwagon.