Diageo unveils paper bottles for Johnnie Walker

Ewan Andrew, chief sustainability officer, Diageo PLC, said, "We're proud to have created this world first. We are constantly striving to push the boundaries within sustainable packaging and this bottle has the potential to be truly ground-breaking. It feels fitting that we should launch it with Johnnie Walker, a brand that has often led the way in innovation throughout its 200 years existence."

The British multinational has partnered with a venture management company, Pilot Lite, to launch Pulpex, a sustainable packaging technology company. "We're thrilled to be working with global brand leaders in this consortium. By working together, we can use the collective power of the brands to help minimise the environmental footprint of packaging by changing manufacturing and consumer behaviours," said Sandy Westwater, director, Pilot Lite.

Pulpex has established a partner consortium of world-leading FMCG companies in non-competing categories including Unilever, and PepsiCo, with further partners expected to be announced later in the year. The consortium partners are each expecting to launch their own branded paper bottles, based on the sustainable packaging company’s design and technology in 2021.

Richard Slater, chief R&D officer, Unilever, said, "We believe in tackling plastic waste through innovation and collaboration. We are going to halve our use of virgin plastic at Unilever, reducing our use of plastic packaging by more than 100,000 tonnes in the next five years. Joining forces to develop and test paper bottles is an incredibly exciting step forward, and we're delighted to be working together to tackle one of the biggest environmental challenges of our time."

Simon Lowden, chief sustainability officer, PepsiCo, said, "Innovative solutions and partnerships are critical to driving meaningful progress toward a circular economy. The Pulpex consortium is well-positioned to deliver sustainable packaging at scale and across industries, having an impact beyond what any organisation could achieve alone. We're proud to be a part of it."

Pulpex claims that it has developed a scalable paper-based bottle designed and developed to be 100% plastic-free and expected to be fully recyclable. The bottle is made from sustainably sourced pulp to meet food-safe standards and will be fully recyclable in standard waste streams, claims the company. 

The technology will allow brands to rethink their packaging designs, or move existing designs into paper, whilst not compromising on the existing quality of the product. It also enables producing a variety of plastic-free, single mould bottles that can be used across a range of consumer goods.

According to the company, the packaging has been designed to contain a variety of liquid products and will form part of Diageo's commitment towards Goal 12 of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals: Responsible Consumption and Production.

Diageo boasts of its presence in more than 180 countries around the world. Its brands include Johnnie Walker, Crown Royal, J&B, Buchanan's and Windsor whiskies, Smirnoff, Cîroc and Ketel One vodkas, Captain Morgan, Baileys, Don Julio, Tanqueray and Guinness.