US-headquartered Berlin Packaging is well-known in the industry for its regular acquisitions, which have recently included Coropoulis Packaging and StyleGlass.
But the company is also aiming to make strides on its ESG goals as reportedly the "world’s largest hybrid packaging supplier."
Following a roundtable presented at Luxe Pack Monaco, Packaging Gateway spoke to company representatives for the EMEA region and chief marketing officer Dario Bassetti about Berlin Packaging’s “strategic pillar” of sustainable materials.
Bassetti explained that “Packaging plays a crucial role. We are aware that only through dialogue with our stakeholders, customers and suppliers can we overcome the current challenges together.
“This involves consumers increasingly demanding sustainability, but they are not always ready to pay the price."
Berlin Packaging’s business model aims to provide maximum freedom in the use of materials and processes that can be optimised, focusing on three main areas: circularity, optimisation and reuse. These are integrated into the services and drive innovations and business proposals.
The company’s 2022 Sustainability Report stated that it enabled its customers to eliminate more than 2,000 metric tons of greenhouse gas emissions and conducted 120 Life-Cycle Assessments.
However, Bassetti highlighted the European Union’s regulations, which “are becoming more and more complicated”, including the Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation (PPWR) and Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive.
The strengths of being a hybrid packaging supplier
Berlin Packaging’s stands at Luxe Pack Monaco featured recyclable and refillable products for the spirits and beauty markets.
For specific cases, Berlin Packaging also offers a customisable life cycle assessment that is part of its CORE model, which stands for Circularity, Optimisation, Reuse and Refill and Environmental Services.
As the company supplies hybrid packaging, it is “able to give the correct solution to each customer across plastic, glass and aluminium. This opens up ideas for our clients, like a wine producer who accepted our pitch for an aluminium bottle. We are material agnostic.”
Berlin Packaging’s sustainability goals
Over the past year, Berlin Packaging has aligned its ESG commitments with globally recognised metrics, adhering to the United Nations Global Compact and setting emissions reduction targets in line with the Science Based Targets Initiative (SBTi). Berlin Packaging aims to:
- By 2030, make a 25% reduction in direct and indirect CO₂ emissions generated by the company and emissions related to the value chain, monitoring energy consumption and implementing specific initiatives to reduce emissions and transition to renewable energy sources.
- Offer customers a range of fully recyclable products
- Continue to develop products with a reduced environmental impact through the optimal use of materials and the development of reuse/refill solutions
In addition, the company has obtained the LEED Gold certification for its new EMEA headquarters in Milan, converting a former warehouse and using cutting-edge technologies that enable energy savings. This is alongside receiving a Silver rating from ESG company EcoVadis.
These steps amount to Berlin Packaging’s proactive approach when it comes to sustainable supply chains, but its challenge of balancing innovations across different hybrid packaging materials remains.
