June 30, 2025
Circularity is more than just recycling
As momentum builds around making better use of our resources, it’s easy to assume that recycling is the end goal. But recycling is just one piece of the puzzle. True circularity is broader, more ambitious and more collaborative.
According to the Ellen MacArthur Foundation, a circular economy is built on three core principles:
1. Eliminate waste and pollution
2. Keep products and materials in use
3. Regenerate natural systems
This article explores how these principles are moving from theory to action. Circular solutions must consider not only how packaging is designed and recycled, but also how equipment and services can help reduce material use, avoid waste, improve recyclability and extend lifespan. In this piece, we focus on packaging and how cartons, in particular, are helping bring circular principles to life.
As Kinga Sieradzon, Vice President of Sustainability Operations at Tetra Pak, puts it:
“We are facing the reality that our food system still use substantial resources. It’s our responsibility, as industry leaders, to support the transition to a circular economy.”
Of course, the primary role of any food package is to protect what’s inside, Kinga goes on to say. Aseptic cartons keep food safe for months, without the need for preservatives or energy-intensive refrigeration. By extending the shelf life of food, cartons expand food access helping to reduce food loss and waste throughout the supply chain.
Designing packaging and materials for tomorrow’s food systems
If packaging is going to have a second life, it needs to be designed with that future in mind. That means thinking through its entire journey - from where its materials come from, to how it’s used, collected and eventually recycled.
It’s a big ask. Which is why we don’t do it alone.
Working with groups like the Food and Beverage Cartons Alliance and 4evergreen - a cross-industry alliance of more than 110 members, from pulp and paper producers to retailers and recyclers. Together, we’re developing shared design guidelines that help ensure fibre-based packaging is recyclable at scale, Kinga states. These kinds of standards make it easier for all parts of the recycling system, especially recycling mills, to recover valuable materials instead of letting them go to waste.
“Designing for the future isn’t about ticking a box. It’s about giving packaging the best possible chance to stay in the loop—and keeping valuable materials in use.”
In 2023, 4evergreen updated its Circularity by Design Guideline to focus on used beverage cartons, giving clearer direction on how to design for the specialised mills that handle this type of material.
At the same time, Kinga explains, we’re also exploring new ways to improve what goes into the pack in the first place. Alongside our use of paperboard sourced from FSC-certified forests and other controlled sources, we’re increasing the use of plant-based polymers made from Bonsucro-certified sugarcane, a renewable, fully traceable material that helps reduce the climate impact of our packaging.
And this is just part of a bigger push. Every year, we invest around €100 million to improve the environmental profile of our cartons whether that’s developing simpler material structures, increasing fibre content, or exploring paper-based barriers without compromising food safety.
“Designing for the future isn’t about ticking a box. It’s about giving packaging the best possible chance to stay in the loop—and keeping valuable materials in use, ” says Kinga Sieradzon.
Creating demand for recycled materials
Designing for recyclability is only half the equation. The other half is ensuring that what gets recycled is actually used.
Across industries, we’re now seeing encouraging signs of demand for recycled carton materials, particularly polyAl - a composite of polymers and aluminium recovered from beverage cartons.
“The future of recycling lies not in what we discard, but in what we design, demand and build together.”
Take these examples of materials already being put to good use across industries:
- Fiat has incorporated recycled polyAl into the interior of its new Grande Panda, a milestone for the automotive industry.
- Schoeller Allibert has developed durable transport crates containing up to 50% recycled polyAl, which will be used at Tetra Pak’s own spare parts distribution centre.
- The Noè pallet, developed with Lucart and CPR System, is made from fully recycled polyAl and is already being used in major retail supply chains.
Kinga states: “Keeping materials in use depends not just on recycling but on creating viable, large-scale markets for recycled content.”
Using digital tools to drive change at the consumer level
Even the most thoughtfully designed packaging needs consumer engagement to fulfil its circular potential. That’s where digital innovation plays a growing role, in bridging the gap between intent and impact.
Here are just a few ways digital innovation is helping keep materials in circulation:
- Connected packaging – QR codes and smart labels offer localised recycling instructions, making it easier for people to act confidently.
- AI-enabled tracking (Aldi) – Verifies whether flexible plastics are actually recycled, helping build public trust in the system.
- Nike – Another brand setting the pace is Nike, whose "Move to Zero" initiative focuses on a journey toward zero carbon and zero waste. By rethinking how products are made, used and returned, Nike is giving athletes more tangible ways to join the shift toward a more circular future.
- Podback – A great example from the coffee sector, where major brands have teamed up to offer prepaid recycling bags for used aluminium pods. By combining user-friendly design with a shared take-back scheme, Podback shows how cross-brand collaboration can inspire behaviour change at scale.
The opportunity ahead
The future of recycling is already here from car interiors to supermarket pallets, from plant-based polymers to AI-enabled recycling systems. Now it’s time to scale it.
“The future of recycling lies not in what we discard, but in what we design, demand and build together.”
