In the Netherlands, popular brewer Carlsberg has launched the largest trial to date of its biobased and fully recyclable beer bottles. Dubbed Fibre Bottle, 8,000 bottles will be distributed throughout Denmark, Sweden, Norway, Finland, United Kingdom, Poland, Germany and France at select festivals and flagship events, as well as targeted product samplings. Testing at this scale will give Carlsberg the opportunity to gather feedback on people’s experiences of the product, which will inform the next generation of design.
The key to the bottle’s performance is a plant-based polyethylene furanoate (PEF) lining developed by Avantium. PEF is made entirely from natural raw materials, is compatible with plastic recycling systems, and can degrade into nature should it end up outside national recycling systems.
Beyond its sustainable packaging benefits, PEF functions as a highly effective barrier between the beer and the fiber outer shell, protecting the taste and fizziness of the beer better than conventional fossil-fuel-based plastic.
“Identifying and producing PEF, as a competent functional barrier for beer, has been one of our greatest challenges—so getting good test results, collaborating with suppliers and seeing the bottles being filled on the line is a great achievement!” says Stephane Munch, VP Group Development at Carlsberg.
The outer shell of the bottle, produced by the packaging company Paboco, consists of sustainably-sourced wood fiber