Multinational packaging specialist to the healthcare, personal care and beauty industries, Essentra Packaging, has celebrated its latest Sustainability Week from April 18, with the theme of responsible waste management.

Through the week, the business hosts dedicated awareness events and onsite toolbox talks, designed to get its teams and customers thinking about sustainability in a more holistic and connected way. The goal, Essentra Packaging says, is to build a stronger and more environmentally focused packaging supply chain.

Lydia Chavarría, Environment Manager at Essentra Packaging, explains the significance: “It’s all about creating a positive environmental culture within the business, which if done effectively, ripples out to our clients and the wider market. With this goal in mind, we host our Essentra Sustainability Weeks twice a year with a different core focus. The effective management of waste – our latest theme - is absolutely crucial in today’s manufacturing world, where every single decision counts.

“To reduce our own levels of waste, we have made significant Zero Waste to Landfill (ZWTL) by 2030 commitments at our sites around the globe. After independent third-party auditing, around half of our facilities are now confirmed to be achieving this, so real progress is being made. As one of the most trusted names in our field, we must continue turning sustainability from buzzword into true business culture. It’s about challenging ourselves as a business, on every level, to be better.”

Aiming to continue its strong upward momentum, Essentra takes a three-pronged approach to ‘greener’ packaging, in what the business calls it’s ‘360º approach to sustainability’.

Laura López, Marketing Manager at Essentra Packaging, adds: “For us, this means supporting the knowledge of our teams, the innovation for our technical development, and aligning our marketing communications to amplify the message”

“A fantastic example of how this connected approach works in real time is the development and promotion of Re*Flect, our plastic-free, 100% recyclable metallised cardboard packaging solution, launched in 2021. As a packaging developer, we cannot underestimate how important it is to share this knowledge and our unique perspective on sustainability - by putting our own expertise out there and being fully transparent, we make sure our customers are making more meaningful and informed decisions around sustainability.”

Aiming to lead by example, Essentra Packaging announced new environmental KPIs and targets in 2020, committing to carbon neutral (Scope 1&2 emissions) operation by 2040 and reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by 25% by 2025, compared with its 2019 figures. The business has since announced its achievements so far, reducing its GHG emissions for the packaging division by 17% through dedicated energy efficiency projects and the procurement of certified renewable energy.

The business believes that is has never been more important for the packaging industry to move quickly on Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) programmes, particularly when brands can be overwhelmed with shifting regulations and carbon calculations.

Lydia concludes: “This is why our Sustainability Week events make a real difference; it starts with us, but there is a much bigger long-term picture in mind. With waste management being our latest theme, it’s also a great opportunity how much progress we are making in this area with our ZWTL programme. We challenge what we do today for the good of tomorrow!”

To find out more about Essentra Packaging and its sustainability commitments, please visit https://www.essentra.com/en/capabilities/packaging/sustainability-solutions.