Finland-based Amerplast Partners with Metsä Tissue’s Serla Brand

The transition to the Circular Economy is a necessity when we wish to create a better and more sustainable future for our children and the generations to come. We need to make the most of our limited resources and work together against climate change. Amerplast and Metsä Tissue’s Serla brand are partnering to introduce the first Circular Economy Tissue Packaging to the market.

Amerplast’s ESSI Kiertokääre is a circular economy packaging concept that utilizes recycled plastic from industrial sources and post-consumer recycled plastic packaging separately collected from Finnish households. According to Amerplast research the use of recycled raw materials decreases the environmental effects of packaging and also the need for virgin raw materials.

What makes Serla’s Green Pack packaging unique is not only the use of recycled materials. The packaging is a combination of both the ESSI Kiertokääre concept and biobased Green PE polyethylene. Green PE is produced using ethanol, a by-product in sugar production. It contains no fossil raw materials and can be recycled in existing recycling streams. Sugar cane is a 100 percent renewable and carbon dioxide depleting resource. It removes up to 2.15 metric tons of CO2 from the atmosphere for each ton produced, from cradle to the supplier Braskem’s gate (source: LCA study by E4tech & LCA Works). After use, the Green Pack packaging is fully recyclable through existing recycling streams as raw material for new tissue packaging.

“We are excited and proud to launch this innovative material on Serla yellow toilet tissue packages. Sustainability is in the core of the Serla brand, and in addition to this new packaging we are supporting the Circular Economy also by using recycled paper in Serla products”, says Hanna Hirvonen, brand manager for Serla.

Amerplast, founded in 1952, is one of Europe's largest flexo printers and bag converters and a leader in sustainable and innovative packaging solutions, manufacturing flexible packaging for fast moving consumer goods for both food and non-food categories. The company plays a key role in consumer goods categories such as retail bags, bakery, fresh and frozen food, consumer tissue and personal care, providing optimal logistics and packaging solutions that efficiently support customer business. With manufacturing plants in Finland and Poland and sales offices in Germany, Sweden and Russia, Amerplast employs around 450 people and sells to customers in more than twenty five countries. With its AmerGreen program Amerplast is taking a leading position in transforming the flexible packaging industry into an environmentally sound business.

With its high-quality tissue and greaseproof papers, Metsä Tissue makes life more comfortable for consumers, customers and end-users every day. Metsä Tissue is a leading tissue paper products supplier to households and professionals in Europe and the world’s leading supplier of greaseproof papers. Metsä Tissue’s main brands are Lambi, Serla, Mola, Tento, Katrin and SAGA. With production units in five countries, Metsä Tissue employs a total of about 2,800 people and the sales in 2018 were EUR 1 billion. Metsä Tissue is part of Metsä Group.

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