Springfield, Mass. – The Paperboard Packaging Council (PPC) today announced the winners of its 77th annual North American Paperboard Packaging Competition. Evaluated on design, manufacturing, distribution, and marketing, these eight folding cartons and rigid boxes earned the competition’s top awards—and surely represent some of the best paperboard packaging manufactured in North America this year.

Package & Innovation of the Year:

Graphic Packaging International, Patagonia 6-Can KeelClip™
A first for PPC’s competition, Graphic Packaging International took home both the Innovation of the Year Award and the Paperboard Package of the Year (the competition’s highest honor) for the groundbreaking KeelClip™ design.

A plastic-free solution for beverage can multipacks that eliminates the need for rings or shrink wrap, KeelClip™ minimizes board usage while maximizing shelf appeal by prominently displaying the primary cans.

Folding Carton of the Year:

Graphic Packaging International, Stella Artois 6-Bottle Rounded Flex Handle Carton

A completely unique beer design, Graphic Packaging International’s Stella Artois carton features four rounded corners, a flex handle for comfortable carrying, and a zipper feature that runs around the body of the carton, allowing for clean and easy opening by the consumer.

Digital Application of the Year:

WestRock, M&M’s NFL

Teaming up with Mars Wrigley, WestRock kicked off the football season with a surefire touchdown. Using digital printing, they created interactive, serialized M&M’s cartons that were updated weekly with current game scores and stats.

Sustainability of the Year:

Graphic Packaging International, PaperSeal™

In a big leap forward for green packaging, Graphic Packaging International’s PaperSeal™ design reduces plastic use by 80-90% as compared to the vacuum sealed packaging or modified atmosphere packaging it is designed to replace.

Rigid Box of the Year:

WestRock, Jung & Wulff Gift Pack

This excellent rigid box features a perfectly flat, 12-inch-long face-panel, a recessed pull-out handle, as well as antique map graphics, gold stamping, and engraving art that highlights the historical, global story of Jung & Wulff’s 1883 origins.

Dick DePaul Award for Creative Design and Converting:

Frankston Packaging, 3-Pack Scrub Sampler

Awarded in memory of Dick DePaul, a longtime judge and industry stalwart who passed away last year, Frankston Packaging’s Scrub Sampler pack offers strength, sustainability, and aesthetic value through the implementation of excellent structural design.

Judges’ Award:

Zumbiel Packaging, Braxton Hard Seltzers

Zumbiel Packaging helped Braxton Hard Seltzers to embrace affiliate marketing with national sports teams like the Indiana Pacers and the Cincinnati Bengals. With digital printing, they were able to add different team logos, efficiently hyper-segmenting their markets while decreasing carton volume per individual SKU.

Judges’ Award:

JohnsByrne, Galaxy S20 Sales Team Launch Kit

An engaging promotional kit created to educate Samsung sales reps about the newest Galaxy S20 phone, JohnsByrne’s design features a unique, trapezoid shape that mimics the slopes and ridges of the phone. Inside are various panels of information as well as interactive paperboard structures that highlight the phone’s new camera features.

In addition to these top awards, the competition recognized around 70 other entries with Gold and Excellence Awards. This year’s contest also featured a new category honoring PPC member contributions to the COVID-19 response, such as the manufacture of face shields or PPE packaging.

To learn more about PPC’s carton competition and get the full story about each of the exciting top designs, visit paperbox.org/cc. 

Now in its 91st year, the Paperboard Packaging Council (PPC) is the North American association for manufacturers of paperboard packaging and their suppliers. PPC works to grow, promote, and protect the paperboard packaging industry while providing its members with resources and tools to compete successfully in the marketplace. For more information, visit www.paperbox.org.