28 februar 2023

Löfbergs is first with a new kind of recyclable coffee packaging

After several years of development, the Swedish-based coffee roaster Löfbergs is now presenting a world first in the form of coffee packages in mono-laminate. The benefit of the new packaging is that it can be recycled instead of incinerated, which creates prerequisites for a circular economy. The climate impact is reduced with 55 per cent compared to previous packages.

“We are of course incredibly proud and happy today! This is an amazing step forward – not just for us, but for the entire coffee industry that can reduce the climate footprint even more now. We have already started using the new packaging and the feedback from our customers is very positive,” says Madelene Breiling, Head of Operational Development at Löfbergs.

The new packaging is one objective that has been achieved in Löfbergs’s ambition to become 100 per cent circular by 2030 and to only use packaging with recycled or renewable material that can be recycled.

Preserves flavours and aromas
Today’s coffee packaging normally consists of several layers with different types of plastic, so-called multilayer films. This kind of packaging cannot be recycled, as sorting facilities usually cannot detect and separate the different materials, which leads to them being incinerated. This is not an issue with the new packaging as it only consists of one type of plastic – a mono-polyethylene laminate.

“The challenge has been to guarantee a satisfactory runnability without tampering with important barrier properties like oxygen barrier and puncture resistance. Coffee is a sensitive product and the packaging must make sure that the flavours and aromas are preserved. That the packaging can be collected, sorted and recycled in all markets has also been an important aspect during the development,” says Madelene Breiling.

Löfbergs has developed the new packaging together with a material and machine supplier, and the packaging has been approved and certified by the German testing institute cyclos-HTP.

“We have already started using the new packaging and the feedback from our customers is very positive,” says Madelene Breiling, Head of Operational Development at Löfbergs.