6 CPGs Team Up on Paper Flexibles R&D

The Ellen MacArthur Foundation launched the PaperFlex Consortium to accelerate innovation for paper-based flexible packaging solutions as alternatives to plastic packaging. It will primarily target innovation for small-format packaging and will prioritize geographic markets where plastics are likely to end up in the environment due to lack of collection and recycling systems. Six consumer packaged goods companies — Colgate-Palmolive, Mars, Nestlé, PepsiCo, Procter & Gamble, and Unilever — are the founding members, and EMF invites others to join. Early conversations about the consortium began in parallel with EMF’s work on a paper-based flexibles report that the group released in March, which suggested that making the switch to fiber could reduce pollution from small-format plastic packaging. “They really share the same objective. The report was an important piece to make sure that all the stakeholders are aligned on the same vision,” Sander Defruyt, strategy lead for plastics at EMF, told Packaging Dive.

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