Olov Winblad von Walter appointed VP, Husum Board and Pulp Mill at Metsä Board

Consider millennials as the poster children for sustainability. They’re the ones toting reusable fabric bags at your local farmer’s market and driving hybrid vehicles around town. If you think about it, it’s no surprise: they learned from the Greatest Generation, who founded Earth Day and turned environmentalism into actionable steps to preserve the planet. As millennials grab the environmentalism baton, their spending habits are expected to match their commitment to the planet. For example, one survey found that 75 percent of millennials look for and spend money on sustainable food products versus just 34 percent of Baby Boomers. As millennials spend serious cash on sustainable products across all industries — from food to cleaning supplies to wellness products — companies are quickly introducing products that appeal to their desire to protect the environment.

Koehler Paper has added “Koehler NexPlus® Seal WVB” to its portfolio of innovative flexible packaging paper in the NexPlus® product line. “Koehler NexPlus® Seal WVB” is a heat-sealable paper which boasts a vapor barrier as its functional layer, thereby offering optimal product protection. The barrier paper is used as primary and secondary packaging and is suitable for a variety of food and non-food products. These include household items like dishwasher tabs, washing powder and bath tabs. “Koehler NexPlus® Seal WVB” is produced with a grammage of 75 gsm. Thanks to its outstanding strength properties, excellent sealability, and optimal runnability “Koehler NexPlus® Seal WVB” is ideally suited for processing on all conventional converting and packaging machines—particularly for gravure and flexographic printing. The barrier paper is made from 100-percent certified virgin fiber pulp, which means it is equally suitable for direct contact with food.

Mondi has created a fully recyclable packaging solution for Warmhaus, a Turkish producer of radiators and boilers for home heating. The new Monocorr Box is made of 100% recyclable corrugated board, including the inserts that cushion the packaged products. The previous Warmhaus packaging used expanded polystyrene (EPS) foam inserts, which have low recycling rates throughout Europe and generally end up in landfill or incineration facilities after disposal. Warmhaus was looking for an environmentally responsible packaging solution that would help to meet their own sustainability goals as well as the requirements of domestic and export customers. Monocorr Box is easily recyclable in Turkey and supports Warmhaus’s exports to the European Union, where some retailers are beginning to switch to EPS-free packaging, even for larger durables. Producers may also have to consider Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) fees for EPS material in the future.