Packaging Europe announced VTT's cellulose-based packaging solution as winner of its Sustainability Awards 2018 in the category of the Bio-based Packaging on 23rd of October in Gothenburg. VTT's solution is 100 % biobased and lightweight packaging material that combines cellulose films with different, but complementary properties creating an ideal packaging solution for dry food packaging applications.
This is already the third time the solution has gained success in a competition. VTT was one of five winners in the Ellen MacArthur Foundation competition last January, and received a prize of EUR 200,000 and access to a twelve-month Acceleration Programme. The packaging solution also won the Ecopack Challenge award last spring, and it has given VTT an opportunity to cooperate with Marks & Spencer.
"We are now in the midst of the Accelerator Program of Ellen MacArthur Foundation's Circular Materials Challenge, and we are speeding up the development of the material at VTT. Our work focuses at the moment on the recyclability of the material and upscaling," tells Anna Tenhunen.
Fast commercialization of the material is important to actually be able to contribute to solving the global challenges we face and therefore it is important that companies engage themselves in the business value chain. Active discussions are held across the whole value chain – major packaging companies as well as large brand owners have expressed their interests towards the innovation.
Sustainability Awards 2018: Sustainability Awards 2018 Winners Unveiled Live in Gothenburg
