Sustainable Drinks Packaging

Sustainability has been a buzzword banded around in design for some time; but now it is top of the agenda for businesses across all sectors, including the drinks industry.

For luxury brands, there has always been a question mark over whether being sustainable jeopardises a truly luxurious experience. However, as the manufacturer behind the ‘Second Skin’ packaging, which revolutionised the champagne market with Maison Ruinart, we know first-hand that it doesn’t.

Looking to the future, brands cannot afford to ignore the need for eco-friendly efforts. In today’s world, consumers want to do better and want to buy more sustainably.

This shift was illustrated by the Footprint Drinks Industry ESG Trends Report 2022 which revealed that more than half (53%) of consumers check packaging labels for eco credentials and 56% consider a drink brand’s green credentials when choosing what drink to buy.

What these findings, and other reports, tell us is that it’s no longer acceptable or smart to ignore sustainability in business. The responsibility to do better is driving businesses to develop and embed sustainable practices to ensure they survive and prosper.

The secondary packaging that a bottle is presented in is expected to amplify the luxurious brand experience by conveying quality and uniqueness; features which can’t be compromised. The buyer, or the recipient of the product, must feel treated before they even get to the beverage they’re opening; and that’s where striking the balance between luxury and sustainability becomes the perfect cocktail.

In direct response to the increased focus on sustainability we created a concept that challenges traditional approaches to packaging design, across multiple luxury sectors, including drink. The concept blends
technological solutions and innovative design with a growing eco-conscious consumer mind-set at the core. Made entirely from moulded fibre, the design demonstrates the limitless possibilities which mono-material packaging can offer. Being made from paper, moulded packaging designs are 100% recyclable and can also be made from recycled paper sources.

The concept also considers texture, for an enhanced user experience, and the option of fibre from James Cropper’s unique CupCycling facility – the world’s first technology to upcycle take-away coffee cups – which can be incorporated into packaging design.