Coca-Cola introduces recyclable paperboard-based rings on can multipacks

11-Aug-2020 - Last updated on 17-Aug-2020 at 11:28 GMT

The new CanCollar technology will launch in the Balearic Islands in November. Pic: CCEP

Coca-Cola European Partners is introducing CanCollar - a paperboard packaging solution - for multipack cans in Spain. The move will avoid the use of 18 tonnes of plastic a year.

The new PEFC certified, recyclable and sustainable sourced paperboard design will launch in the Balearic Islands in November: marking a first in Europe.

CCEP, in partnership with Coca-Cola, is aiming to remove all unnecessary or hard to recycle plastic from its portfolio, avoiding the use of more than 11,000 tonnes of virgin plastic a year across Western Europe.

Commitments to reduce plastic in secondary packaging

CCEP has collaborated with WestRock, a global company that provides its customers with sustainable differentiated packaging solutions.

The bottler has also invested 2.6m euros in its Barcelona plant to support the initiative. The installation of WestRock’s CanCollar Fortuna manufacturing equipment will enable multipack cans to be grouped in a sustainable and environmentally friendly way, with a process that does not require the use of glue or adhesives.

"The agreement with WestRock exemplifies our clear commitment to reduce plastic in our secondary packaging,” said Joe Franses, Vice President of Sustainability, CCEP.

“By the end of 2020, we will have removed more than 4,000 tonnes of hard-to-recycle plastic from our secondary packaging in Western Europe. It’s through collaborating on innovative packaging solutions like CanCollar that we are able to do this.”

Exploring innovative new packaging designs is part of Coca-Cola’s World Without Waste strategy.