Norwegian packaging manufacturer Elopak crosses the one billion sold threshold of beverage cartons with Natural Brown Board in February. The Natural Brown Pure-Pak cartons are fully recyclable and have a lower carbon footprint than conventional white cartons due to reduced wood consumption and the elimination of the bleaching process. In total, Elopak has thus been able to save around 3,000 tonnes of greenhouse gas emissions since the market launch. This is roughly equivalent to 1,400 flights from London to New York and back.
Elopak developed its gable-top cartons with Natural Brown Board together with Stora Enso and has been the first manufacturer to offer them since 2017. Their authentic, natural look makes it easy for consumers to recognise them as sustainable packaging. Already in 2019, demand was strong and Elopak was able to announce a significant increase in the sales volume of its cartons with Natural Brown Board. Since then, many more brands have switched to this sustainable packaging solution in response to growing consumer interest in environmentally friendly products. Today, around 20 per cent of the Pure-Pak milk cartons that Elopak sells in Western Europe are made with Natural Brown Board.
Shortly after the market launch, well-known customers opted for Natural Brown Board beverage cartons. Some customers went a step further and removed the plastic closure. Norwegian dairy TINE switched from a white carton with closure to the Natural Brown Board carton without closure, which resulted in a reduction of its carbon footprint by about 40 per cent. Sweden’s second largest dairy, Skånemejerier, also removed the closure from all 1-litre organic milk cartons of the Hjordnära brand and launched its organic milk in Pure-Pak cartons with Easy Opening instead.
