Materials & Packaging

The latest developments in materials, feedstocks and processes that are transforming the way many conventional products are made and packaged — and eliminating their negative impacts

Article
Materials & Packaging
Q&A: DuPont Sorona and the Evolution, and Revolution, of Biomaterials
Q&A: DuPont Sorona and the Evolution, and Revolution, of Biomaterials
Published on August 14, 2018
About a 14 minute read

Over his more than 30 years in the business, Mike Saltzberg has seen firsthand how sustainability has grown to be of equal consideration with technical performance and cost in the development of new biomaterials. Saltzberg is the Global Business Dire... View More

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Materials & Packaging
2 Companies Capitalizing on the Market Shift Away from Disposable Plastic Packaging
2 Companies Capitalizing on the Market Shift Away from Disposable Plastic Packaging
Published on August 14, 2018
About a 3 minute read

A growing market shift has reached a critical mass this year against disposable plastic packaging. Leading on the regulatory front, the EU announced a goal of making all of its plastic waste recyclable or reusable by 2030. In the private sector, majo... View More

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Materials & Packaging
Paper Battery from BillerudKorsnäs, Uppsala Paving Way for Energy Storage in Packaging
Paper Battery from BillerudKorsnäs, Uppsala Paving Way for Energy Storage in Packaging
Published on August 7, 2018
About a 3 minute read

Swedish sustainable packaging giant BillerudKorsnäs and researchers at Uppsala University have partnered to bring paper batteries to life. Together, they have taken basic research based on pure cellulose from algae and developed it to work with the ... View More

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Materials & PackagingMaterials & Packaging
Can Lessons from the Slow Food Movement Fuel Slow Fashion?
Can Lessons from the Slow Food Movement Fuel Slow Fashion?
Published on August 7, 2018
About a 6 minute read

Grocery stores, restaurants and coffee shops have wholeheartedly embraced the slow food movement, with phrases such as "certified organic," "fair-trade" and "all-natural" plastered across product packaging and menus. Whi... View More

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Materials & PackagingMaterials & Packaging
Trending: Healthier Buildings Are on the Horizon; New Materials Clean the Air
Trending: Healthier Buildings Are on the Horizon; New Materials Clean the Air
Published on July 27, 2018
About a 4 minute read

What if buildings could break down pollution and act like forests? What if they could make occupants healthier? ... View More

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Materials & PackagingMaterials & Packaging
Paper Calculator v4 Continues to Drive Sustainable Use, Purchasing
Paper Calculator v4 Continues to Drive Sustainable Use, Purchasing
Published on July 25, 2018
About a 3 minute read

From packaging to copy paper and tissue, global paper consumption is steadily increasing. Reducing paper’s impacts on the planet is critical, but only what’s measured is managed. Previous tools to help quantify paper’s environmental performance... View More

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Materials & PackagingMaterials & Packaging
Trending: New Spins on Wood, Hemp, Coconut Recognized as Winning Natural Fibers
Trending: New Spins on Wood, Hemp, Coconut Recognized as Winning Natural Fibers
Published on July 24, 2018
About a 4 minute read

A process that turns wood pulp into yarn and a vegan wool alternative made from hemp and coconut fibers have respectively earned a spot in Fashion for Good’s Scaling Programme and a prize in the 2018 Biodesign Challenge. ... View More

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Materials & PackagingMaterials & Packaging
3 Easy Concepts for Sustainable Packaging to Reduce Food Waste
3 Easy Concepts for Sustainable Packaging to Reduce Food Waste
Published on July 24, 2018
About a 5 minute read

Packaging waste, especially plastics, is the sustainability issue of our time, driven by growing public and media attention. Yet just two years ago, we were talking about food waste and one overlapping yet unresolved question is the role that packagi... View More

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Materials & Packaging
adidas, Neste Bolstering Markets for Recycled Plastics
adidas, Neste Bolstering Markets for Recycled Plastics
Published on July 23, 2018
About a 3 minute read

Amidst the anti-plastic frenzy dominating corporate sustainability news lately, adidas and Neste have announced plans to increase their efforts to utilize more waste plastic. ... View More

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Materials & Packaging
Greenpeace: Clothing Industry Showing Progress Toward Detox Commitments
Greenpeace: Clothing Industry Showing Progress Toward Detox Commitments
Published on July 13, 2018
About a 4 minute read

For the first time, Greenpeace has released a report on the progress of its Detox campaign to eliminate hazardous chemicals from clothing production by 2020. The 80 companies who have signed on over the first seven years of the initiative represent a... View More

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Materials & PackagingMaterials & Packaging
Lowe’s to Phase Out 2 Toxic Chemicals Following Deaths, Petitions, EPA Inaction
Lowe’s to Phase Out 2 Toxic Chemicals Following Deaths, Petitions, EPA Inaction
Published on May 30, 2018
About a 5 minute read

Lowe’s has become the first major U.S. retailer to commit to ending the sale of two toxic chemicals in its paint removal products sold globally by the end of this year. The chemicals, methylene chloride and N-methylpyrrolidone (NMP), have been link... View More

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Materials & Packaging
Toxnot: Distilling the Complexity of Chemical Supply Chains
Toxnot: Distilling the Complexity of Chemical Supply Chains
Published on May 28, 2018
About a 7 minute read

As we get ready to judge our semi-finalists next week in the 2018 Sustainable Brands Innovation Open, we wanted to check in with last year’s competitors to learn about the impacts they continue to have on the business world. Here, we catch up with ... View More

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Materials & PackagingMaterials & Packaging
Trending: Aquafil-H&M Collaboration, Cotton Dyeing Process Making Textiles More ‘Effective’
Trending: Aquafil-H&M Collaboration, Cotton Dyeing Process Making Textiles More ‘Effective’
Published on May 24, 2018
About a 4 minute read

This year, the world’s largest event on sustainability in fashion, the Copenhagen Fashion Summit, included an Innovation Competition that saw 12 finalists pitch their technologies onstage in front of a panel of expert judges and Summit attendees. A... View More

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Materials & PackagingMaterials & Packaging
Apple Partners with Rio Tinto, Alcoa on Zero-Carbon Aluminum Smelting
Apple Partners with Rio Tinto, Alcoa on Zero-Carbon Aluminum Smelting
Published on May 15, 2018
About a 3 minute read

Apple uses a lot of aluminum across its product line — it’s part of the company’s design ethos. But it also represents almost a quarter of Apple’s manufacturing emissions. ... View More

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Materials & PackagingMaterials & Packaging
Why Sustainable Chemistry Is Key to the Success of a Circular Fashion Industry
Why Sustainable Chemistry Is Key to the Success of a Circular Fashion Industry
Published on May 14, 2018
About a 3 minute read

Earlier this year, the Global Fashion Agenda released the CEO Agenda for the fashion industry, which highlights the “efficient use of chemicals, water and energy” as a core priority for immediate implementation. However, while chemical management... View More

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Materials & PackagingMaterials & Packaging
U.S. Plastics Producers Aim to Recycle or Recover 100% of Plastic Packaging by 2040
U.S. Plastics Producers Aim to Recycle or Recover 100% of Plastic Packaging by 2040
Published on May 9, 2018
About a 4 minute read

Three new goals to enhance the circular economy for plastics and reduce packaging waste have been announced by leading U.S. plastic producers including BASF, Dow, DuPont and Braskem. ... View More

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Materials & PackagingMaterials & Packaging
Trending: Pizza, Water, Frozen Foods Find Plastic-Free Packaging
Trending: Pizza, Water, Frozen Foods Find Plastic-Free Packaging
Published on May 2, 2018
About a 6 minute read

People of all ages are more aware of their impact on the planet’s limited resources and ecosystem health than ever before. Packaging is of particular concern, prompting this year’s Earth Day theme: end plastic pollution. “I’d like more people... View More

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Materials & PackagingMaterials & Packaging
More Companies Are Saying Don’t Go Paperless — Choose the Right Paper, Instead
More Companies Are Saying Don’t Go Paperless — Choose the Right Paper, Instead
Published on April 20, 2018
About a 4 minute read

Although we see every day as Earth Day, the annual celebration always inspires great conversation about sustainability and how we can do better as a society. We believe education is the cornerstone of this observance, and though we always hear about ... View More

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Materials & PackagingMaterials & Packaging
Trending: Enzymes, Recycled Roads Offer More Solutions to Our Plastic Problem
Trending: Enzymes, Recycled Roads Offer More Solutions to Our Plastic Problem
Published on April 18, 2018
About a 5 minute read

Growing consumer awareness and pressure has pushed plastic waste to the forefront of sustainability concerns, prompting numerous commitments to reduce single-use plastics, more efforts to combat marine plastic pollution, and the adoption of a bottle ... View More

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Materials & PackagingMaterials & Packaging
10 Startups to Pitch Sustainable Chemistry, Material Solutions to BASF, J&J, P&G
10 Startups to Pitch Sustainable Chemistry, Material Solutions to BASF, J&J, P&G
Published on April 17, 2018
About a 6 minute read

The Green Chemistry & Commerce Council (GC3), a multi-stakeholder collaborative that drives the commercial adoption of sustainable chemistry, has selected the 10 startups that have won the opportunity to pitch their sustainable chemicals, materia... View More

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