Evergreen Packaging, Memphis, Tenn., USA, a manufacturer of refrigerated paper cartons, this week debuted a Fully Renewable Carton, part of its RenewablePlus™ Carton line, featuring sugarcane-based polyethylene. Part of the Evergreen Packaging family of FreshHouse™ Cartons, the new RenewablePlus Cartons underscore the company's commitment to developing sustainable packaging solutions from renewable materials. 

"Our new RenewablePlus Carton reflects our promise to continually innovate and create unique renewable packaging solutions that serve both customers and consumers," said DeWitt Clark, VP of North American Packaging at Evergreen Packaging. "Customers can offer fully renewable carton options which leverage our industry-leading expertise in barrier extrusion technology. Consumers can feel good about purchasing products knowing that they're purchasing packaging made from renewable materials."

The RenewablePlus Carton is available in all board grades and all sizes of the FreshHouse line of cartons. Made from responsibly sourced fiber, FreshHouse Cartons are made from a renewable material, paper from trees grown in forests where responsible management practices are used and where overall growth exceeds use. Renewable fiber from trees plus renewable polyethylene from sugarcane results in a paper carton that is fully renewable. In addition, more than 50% of the energy used to manufacture cartons is biomass, a renewable energy source derived from wood byproducts. The cartons are also recyclable. 

Consumers are looking for sustainable packaging and for many that means packaging made with renewable materials. According to recent research by EcoFocus Worldwide LLC, 72% of grocery shoppers say a corporate commitment to only use packaging that is made with renewable materials is extremely or very influential to their purchase decisions. Additionally, 50% of grocery shoppers say they always or usually look for beverages in packaging that is made with renewable materials.

"For brands and consumers looking for sustainable packaging, packaging made with renewable materials is one of the best choices they can make," said Derric Brown, sustainability director for Evergreen Packaging. "Using renewable materials means that today's needs for protective packaging can be met, and the resources can be replenished to meet the needs of the future."

Evergreen Packaging is focused on developing innovative fiber-based products to meet the business goals of customers and sustainability preferences of consumers. Earlier this year, the company introduced the Sentinel™ lines of paper, paperboard, and ice cream board, which also feature sugarcane-based polyethylene supplied by Braskem, Br azil. The Sentinel products are designed to be used in a wide range of food service and food packaging applications with varying shelf life needs. 

Evergreen Packaging makes and supplies paper and paperboard products globally with manufacturing facilities in the U.S., Asia, Central America, and the Middle East/North Africa. The company is a top supplier of liquid packaging board in the world. All of the fiber used in Evergreen Packaging products comes from forests in the U.S. where responsible forestry practices are used and where overall growth exceeds harvest.

Braskem is one of the world's leading plastics and chemical companies with 41 industrial plants in Brazil, the U.S., Germany, and Mexico. Braskem is the largest producer of thermoplastic resins in the Americas and the leading producer of biopolymers in the world, creating more environmental-friendly, intelligent and sustainable solutions through chemicals and plastics. Known for innovative solutions such as I'm green Polyethylene™ made from renewable sugarcane and UTEC®, the company's own trademarked Ultra High Molecular Weight Polyethylene for high performance applications, Braskem's products and technologies enable the automotive, packaging, healthcare, and construction industries to produce goods that enhance quality of life for people around the world. Braskem America, Philadelphia, is a wholly owned subsidiary of Braskem S.A. The company is the leading producer of polypropylene in the U.S., with six production plants located in Texas, Pennsylvania, and West Virginia, and an Innovation and Technology Center in Pittsburgh, Pa.