We have no time to waste: The packaging and waste industry needs collaborative solutions NOW

Research indicates that the global packaging market was valued at approximately $900 billion in 2020 and is expected to continue growing due to the rising e-commerce and design trends for more complex packaging. [1] With this growth comes a parallel increase in packaging waste, especially single-use plastics, which persist in the environment for hundreds of years. According to the Ellen MacArthur Foundation, only 14% of plastic packaging is collected for recycling globally, highlighting the inefficiencies in current waste management systems. [2]

Action is required, NOW! At FUTURY, we believe in collaborative solutions. Thus, in response to these challenges, we enable the collaboration between established corporations and innovative startups during our accelerator program THE MISSION Waste. Startups, known for their agility and fresh perspectives, bring novel ideas, speed in testing and new technologies to the table. Established companies, on the other hand, offer resources, market access, deep expertise and scalability.

Last week, we just kicked off this years THE MISSION Waste with Corporate Partners such as Schwarz Gruppe, Nestlé, adapa, WISAG, P&G, Dussmann, Weber, Landeshauptstadt München, Georg Menshen and McDonald’s, and a variety of promising startups.

Together we defined three areas of action: 1) Rethink Design, 2) Rethink Value Chains and 3) Rethink Technology.

Rethinking design entails designing products with end-of-life considerations in mind. This means creating items that are easily recyclable, repairable, or biodegradable. By incorporating principles of circular design, we can minimize waste generation from the outset. Thus, we selected the following five startups:

·???????? Digimind, a GreenDeepTech startups from Berlin, uses the power of AI and digitalization to lightweight glass, plastic and metal-based packaging and thus, reduce material usage. How? They take existing packaging design and optimize it within minutes for weight, while maintaining or improving the performance of the packaging. A digital twin automatically tests and verifies the AI optimized design for production, transportation and use. With their integrated Life Cycle Assessment, they can ensure transparency about the related CO2 emissions reduction.

·???????? one · five is a biomaterials research, development, and scale-up company that offers AI-powered circular, cleaner, and customized packaging solutions efficiently and with measurable impact on the consumer-packaged goods industry. Their AI-driven approach considers various factors like regulations, paper content, sustainability criteria, and heat seal strength. This approach led them to develop the first heat-sealable translucent paper alternative to plastic films, reducing plastic usage by 70% compared to LDPE film. This innovative material is suitable for multiple applications, including overwrappers for perfumes, cosmetics, books, various sizes of multipacks, and single-use primary packaging for confectionery and bakery products.

·???????? Moree helps food brands ditch single use packaging. They offer innovative, flexible, resilient, airtight and waterproof packaging to brands - whether for bread, pastries, granola or coffee. As each pack can be reused 100+ times, each pack can save 5-10 kg of single-use packaging waste. Their packs have unique RFID/QR tags for connecting?to MoreeOS, a SaaS platform that helps brands boost returns of packaging, thereby lowering cost and increasing client loyalty and revenues.

·???????? Xampla's Morro materials, are a plastic-free solution inspired by nature, designed to replace single-use plastics and microplastics in various commercial applications. These materials are made from plant-based natural polymers without additional chemical modifications, allowing them to fully and quickly biodegrade after use. Developed from 15 years of research at the University of Cambridge, Morro materials utilize plant proteins and other natural polymers to create a new biomaterial. They comply with the EU Single-use Plastics Directive and can offer grease and water barrier properties through Morro Coating, providing a plastic-free alternative to coated paper packaging.

·???????? rhinopaq offers reusable transport packaging solutions tailored for cycle between companies or online shops, resellers or consumers, aiding in the reduction of packaging waste and packaging times. Their packaging is made from 60% recycled material and designed for up to 20 cycles, ensuring efficient resource use. Additionally, no tape is needed which increases the speed in manual packing and improves work safety as it eliminates the need for a knife during unpacking.

Rethinking the value chain involves examining every stage of the waste management process to identify inefficiencies and opportunities for improvement. This includes reevaluating how waste is collected, sorted, processed, and reused or disposed of. By optimizing these processes and promoting collaboration across stakeholders, we can maximize resource recovery and minimize environmental impact. Therefore, we selected the following two startups:

·???????? VCG.AI, an AI and data platform enabled by the algorithm, BioLink, assists companies and regions in discovering and validating suitable circular solutions and forming partnerships to implement them. The goal is to help companies and regions significantly reduce their greenhouse gas emissions by facilitating profitable circular solutions within their existing value chains.

·???????? Pickler is the first footprint software 100% tailored to packaging. Their scalable software calculates the environmental footprint of packaging products within minutes. The solution enables better decision-making by providing easy to understand and credible, environmental product data.

Rethinking technology plays a crucial role to deal with hard-to-recycle waste streams, in order to increase the number of valuable materials staying in the loop. In that context, we are really happy about the last startup joining our program this year:

·???????? Microwave Solutions, offers selective molecular recycling and conversion of all molecules, including those from packaging materials and the products themselves. It is feedstock agnostic and product-agile, providing a sustainable approach to handling unprocessed, contaminated, mixed, and difficult-to-recycle waste. The process transforms these materials into chemical building blocks for new high-performance and food-grade products. This modular, mobile, containerized system emits no emissions, showcasing a microwave molecular recycling and conversion solution for a sustainable future.

Corporate-Startup Collaboration in Action

Several success stories from the previous years of our accelerator program highlight the benefits of collaborations between corporates and startups. The startup Recyda for example was founded in 2019 during THE MISSION Waste and has since been working successfully with P&G on recycling solutions to help companies along the packaging value chain assess recyclability with software and data.

Another example is the collaboration that started between Nestlé and Circolution during our program. Circolution enables Nestlé to a cost-effective and sustainable transition from single-use to reusable packaging. Their smart reusable containers, are seamlessly integrated into their digital platform, allow real-time data tracking and provide lifecycle visibility to optimize economic and ecological performance.

All our eight startups are promising solutions to make a positive impact in the industry, and we cannot wait to see the outcome of this year's accelerator in three months.

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Sources:

[1] "Global Packaging Market - Growth, Trends, COVID-19 Impact, and Forecasts (2022 - 2027)." Mordor Intelligence.

[2] "The New Plastics Economy: Rethinking the future of plastics." Ellen MacArthur Foundation.