Packaging company Sonoco has expanded its eco-friendly product line with a new paper-bottomed snack can that is being used for Pringles chips.
As Packaging Dive reported, the move has been so successful that the manufacturer is making a multimillion-dollar investment to expand production to four new facilities.
"It's the single biggest innovation that that pack has seen since the 1960s," said Sean Cairns, president of Sonoco, at a 2024 investor day event initially announcing the paper-bottomed cans, per Packaging Dive.
The affected plants are located in West Chicago, Illinois; Greenville, Wisconsin; Dayton, New Jersey; and Norwalk, California. They are existing facilities that will receive new paper-bottomed presses and can lines.
Previously, this packaging niche was filled by fiber cans with metal bottoms. The ability to recycle these cans has improved in recent years; where once they were completely unrecyclable, now they are accepted at a limited number of locations.
But the new all-paper design is a significant improvement that is much easier to recycle.
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"I think the paper-bottom format is looked at in both the EU and North America as kind of your direction for new product development," said Scott Byrne, executive vice president of global sustainability at Sonoco, per Packaging Dive. "We see that drive for circularity."
Offering this packaging option is a smart business move. Of course, it's good for the environment, but it's also good for consumers, who need healthier alternatives to the plastic packaging that is so pervasive in today's market.
Plastic sheds microplastics and releases toxins when heated, making it a poor choice for wrapping food.
Sonoco isn't going to stop at snacks; its paper-bottomed cans are also suitable for powdered products and dog treats. Its new paper can equipment is also well-situated for expansion to the rest of America as demand for eco-friendly packaging increases.
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