For product and brand managers responsible for food and beverage packaging, 2018 marked an increased focus on reducing single-use plastics. In the past year, more than 250 companies signed the MacArthur Foundation’s New Plastics Economy Global Commitment to reduce or eliminate single-use plastics.

It was about three years ago when Bear Naked Granola decided it wanted to overhaul the packaging on its line of best-selling granolas and granola bites. As a leading brand in the granola space, it wanted to take the lead in another important category: sustainable packaging. But the brand wanted to maintain the feel, function and appearance of its current packaging.

The packaging industry, like much of the world around us, is making strides to become more sustainable and environmentally friendly. The flexographic printing market is not exempt from these trends and, as printers begin to feel pressure from customers to become more sustainable, it is important to consider how and where to implement these changes.

TC Transcontinental Packaging won the Gold for Sustainability (for a second year in a row), Gold for Packaging Excellence and Silver for Technical Innovation at the recent Flexible Packaging Achievement Awards.

Toray Plastics (America), Inc. has joined the Sustainable Packaging Coalition (SPC), a membership-based collaborative that leverages the power of industry to make packaging more sustainable. 

TC Transcontinental Packaging’s Richmond, British Columbia plant, Transcontinental Flexstar, has installed a regenerative thermal oxidizer (RTO), a high caliber pollution abatement system. 

On September 28, 2018, AMERIPEN and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation brought together more than 20 thought leaders from across the U.S. packaging value chain to discuss how to navigate the ever-changing packaging landscape and harness innovation and scale to achieve lasting improvements. 

In line with its commitment to lead the way toward a more resource-efficient society, Flexible Packaging Europe has issued a strong endorsement of the New Plastics Economy Global Commitment led by the Ellen MacArthur Foundation.

Constantia Flexibles has developed a new, more sustainable packaging line: Ecolutions. The new line is designed to meet sustainable requirements, reduce the carbon footprint of packaging, focus on recyclable solutions and decrease the impact on the environment.

KushCo Holdings, Inc., the parent company of innovative cannabis companies such as Kush Supply Co., Kush Energy, The Hybrid Creative, and Koleto Packaging Solutions, has announced that it has joined the Sustainable Packaging Coalition (SPC).