Finnish fish packaging company Tuomaan Kalatukku has selected EcoFishBox from renewable materials company Stora Enso.
Tuomaan packages approximately 1,000t of fish every year. It selected the eco-friendly solution in an effort to minimise the use of fossil-based materials, as well as save on storage space and cost.
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The company will replace its current EPS packaging using the new corrugated board solution.
EcoFishBox will be delivered as flat sheets on a pallet. The boxes can be raised by an erecting machine or by hand.
Tuomaan Kalatukku CEO Jari Tainio said: “The environmental friendliness of the packaging was a key selection criterion for us, along with cost and transport benefits.
“With a corrugated packaging solution, our customers, the fish resellers, can recycle the easily-flattened EcoFishBox along with their waste cardboard, which also saves on waste processing costs.”
Designed for fresh fish packaging, the eco-friendly product is expected to save up to 85% on storage space.
It was developed at the company’s DesignStudio in Lahti, Finland, and is currently offered in 5kg, 10kg and 20kg sizes.
The box can be used with three kinds of lids, such as flat sheet lid to cover the top, a half hood lid to cover the top and half of the sides, and a full hood lid to cover the sides and the top.
Stora Enso Packaging Solutions business development manager Vesa Penttinen said: “We are pleased to have yet another customer onboard that recognises the benefits of phasing out less environment-friendly packaging materials in favour of wood-fibre-based products.
“Our EcoFishBox concept offers the fish industry a cost-effective means to reduce the use of plastics while also ensuring high food hygiene standards.”
Last month, Stora Enso announced plans to convert the Oulu paper mill in Finland into a packaging production plant with an investment of approximately €350m.
