British sustainable packaging and paper company Mondi, in collaboration with rice supplier Veetee, has announced the introduction of new recyclable paper-based dry rice packaging.

Mondi said it is the first time a paper-based dry rice packaging solution has been launched in the UK’s market.

The two companies worked in close coordination to create the entire solution via customisation and to ensure that it meets the specific requirements of dry rice products.

One of these crucial requirements was to provide protection against moisture and make the product stable on shelves.

Mondi said it used a customer-centric approach to provide a 'fit-for-purpose' solution.

Mondi UK & Ireland Consumer Flexibles regional sales James Yarrow said: “This is a quality collection of food products, being sold in a recognised UK retailer.

"Like us, Veetee has their eyes on sustainability at all times: targeting net-zero carbon emissions, reducing single-use plastic and increasing closed-loop recycling - our MAP2030 target is to make all our packaging reusable, recyclable or compostable.”

The new packaging has also been certified by the UK’s recycling label authority, on-pack recycling label.

Made using Mondi’s FunctionalBarrier Paper, Veetee’s paper packs have the appropriate disposal message printed on the pack.

The certification signifies that this packaging is widely accepted for kerbside recycling across the UK.

It will allow both companies' consumers to contribute to a circular economy system.

Veetee group marketing director James Brett said: “Our goal was to eliminate unsustainable packaging and we are very proud to have achieved that as a first to market in the UK - both with paper packaging and our unique Rice Box.”

In January last year, Veetee collaborated with Austrian company Coveris to roll out fully recyclable rice packaging for use by the supermarket chain Aldi.