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“Paperboards are a proven and feasible circular lower-carbon alternative that lessens the impact of packaging on the environment.” Anu Rehtijärvi, Market Intelligence Manager, Metsä Board
The report notes that as new regulations emerge in response to global consumer concerns, “green- washing” just doesn’t cut it anymore. Capital alloca- tion is already based on the sustainability and per- formance of businesses that will be focusing their attention through three lenses: decreased leakage, improved circularity, and a reduced carbon footprint. “As a response, we expect to see a more balanced understanding of true sustainability,” Seidner adds. In the field, there are now stronger efforts to commercialize packaging innovations, as well as better marketing of their performance, for example, showing the carbon footprint printed on packages. Future-proof your business model According to the report, sustainability pressures will also create challenges for substrate players that rely on materials that are now being phased out. “Plastic as a material is not going away anytime soon. However, plastic may be substituted more and more with paperboard, for example.” Seidner finds that the would-be industry winners must update and future-proof their business models and market approaches if they are to come out on top in the race. “Industry leaders are already doing this. For example, the innovations coming from paperboard companies such as Metsä Board and others are super exciting.”
Regulation rules, OK? Marko Summanen , VP Forest Vertical in the EU for consultancy Fisher International, believes that the biggest driver of the current transformation is regulation. “Consumers don’t usually change their behavior simultaneously – regulation is needed to steer behavior in the right direction. Regulation also brings transparency in the future. That makes investment decisions easier,” he says. Change is often slow, even with simple things. “Waste is still being incinerated all over Europe when one should be pursuing circular economy objectives,” says Summanen, offering an example. “The EU wants citizens/companies to create value from waste, meaning more revenue and local work- places. That can only be a good thing.” Every sustainability case is different Assessing the development trends in the packaging industry, Summanen notes that paperboard is a strong champion of sustainability, but it is not the only one. “It would be easy to say that fiber-based or bio- based packaging is always the way to go, but that’s not always the case. It’s a big challenge to find the really sustainable solutions for different foods, for example.” Still, as long as functionality issues are taken care of, paperboard is a great alternative to plastic.
Matthew Seidner Partner at McKinsey
Marko Summanen VP Forest Vertical in EU at Fisher International
Michael George Sales Director, Americas at Metsä Board
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