Materials & Packaging
The latest developments in materials, feedstocks and processes that are transforming the way many conventional products are made and packaged — and eliminating their negative impacts
New Guide Details Tangible Solutions for Retailers to Move ‘Beyond the Bag’
Playbook highlights solutions from the Consortium to Reinvent the Retail Bag that drive near-term, positive environmental impact and cost savings from eliminating single-use plastic bags. ... View More
3 Material Innovators Using Algae to Paint Greener Picture for Fashion
Living Ink, Algaeing and Mounid are changing the game with carbon-negative, fast-to-produce alternatives to carcinogenic, petroleum-based inks, dyes and textiles. ... View More
McKinsey: Circular Economy for Cement Could Be Worth €110B by 2050
The concrete industry is responsible for 8% of all global carbon emissions; and 30-40% of today’s solid waste is created through the construction and maintenance of the built environment. ... View More
Red Carpet Fashion Needs to Be Green
Imagine if, the day after the Oscars, discussion of the best (and worst!) dressed attendees focused as much on the sustainability characteristics of their choices as on how they looked. ... View More
Truly Closing the Loop: The ‘Recyclable’ vs ‘Circular’ Distinction
The term 'recycling' has become ubiquitous in our daily lives, but the nuances between ‘recyclable’ and ‘circular’ are often misunderstood. Understanding the distinction between the two is crucial in achieving a sustainable future. ... View More
Apparel Brands Drive Circular Fashion Future with Recyclable, Renewable Fabrics
Pangaia and Filippa K are the latest to unveil collaborations with circular textile innovators — fueling progress toward closing the loop on fabric waste. ... View More
Algae May Be a ‘Brilliant’ Solution for Capturing Carbon at Gigaton Scale
By controlling and replicating natural processes, Brilliant Planet’s technology can permanently sequester CO2 from the air while also deacidifying the ocean. ... View More
Store Shelves of the Future: Packaging for a Circular Economy
We recently gathered leaders from McKinsey, Unilever and Colgate-Palmolive to ponder what consumer products and their packaging will look like in 2035 and beyond. ... View More
Alaska’s Move to Eliminate Inflight Plastic Reveals Issues Within US Recycling Infrastructure
The airline quickly hit a roadblock in the unrecyclability of paper cups with an integrated plastic lining necessary for beverage service. ... View More
‘Clean Beauty’ Is Just a Pipe Dream If Sustainability Gets Left Behind
Every year, 3B trees are turned into paper packaging for the products we buy — including for many ‘clean’ beauty brands. These brands must take the same holistic approach to their packaging as their ingredients. ... View More
Tech Titans Embrace Responsible Forestry
While many companies focus sustainability efforts on their products and other consumer touch points, two of tech’s largest companies are including large facility construction and remodel projects as a foundation to their efforts having a ‘nature-... View More
2023 Design Trends: Balancing the Beautiful with the Responsible
The balance between luxury and sustainability has set a new bar for luxury packaging, making us all stop and think about how we can do things differently. ... View More
A Sustainable Future Requires Healthy Animals
The FAO estimates livestock emissions could fall by 30% through wider adoption of existing technologies and best practices in animal health and husbandry. Only by taking a holistic food-systems approach that includes sustainable livestock can we make... View More
Basecamp Research Helping Expand Global Access to Safe, Natural Chemicals and Proteins
With a goal of phasing out toxic and forever chemicals in consumer products, the UK-based biotech startup is spearheading the ethical, equitable discovery and utilization of the safe, effective chemicals and proteins waiting to be found in nature and... View More
Modern Meadow Partners to Scale Sustainable Materials Development for Outdoor Apparel Market
The materials innovator and sustainable fabric giant Singtex are co-developing new biomaterials across a range of applications — starting with a sustainably produced, waterproof, membrane-based material for outdoor apparel. ... View More
Stella McCartney to Pilot Mixed-Textile Recycling Venture
Protein Evolution’s technology can turn unused polyester and nylon fabrics from Stella McCartney’s previous collections into good-as-new, infinitely recyclable fibers — and could present a new circular solution for the fashion industry. ... View More
Meet 2 Biomaterial Startups Cultivating a Circular, Climate-Friendlier Fashion Industry
Orange Fiber and Keel Labs are platforms for exploration and innovation that can reverberate across the fashion industry and prove that sustainable feedstocks and production processes can create both financial and planetary prosperity. ... View More
6 Principles for Building a Pathway to Circularity for Plastics
Developing and optimizing a fully circular plastics value chain is a complex challenge that can’t be achieved with any single solution. We challenge our peers and other key stakeholders to be courageous and take risks, to explore new possibilities ... View More
Q&A: Why Partnerships Are Essential for Delivering Circular Packaging for the Food Industry
While flexible packaging plays an important role in keeping food fresher longer, it has long been difficult to recycle. Designing more recyclable flexible packaging from the start and determining a better end-of-life process for current materials is ... View More
Brand Blind Spots, Empty Promises Hindering Effective Action Against Plastic Pollution
As seen in ongoing incidents of greenwashing and a new Greenpeace report, the onus is on consumer product manufacturers to take more comprehensive approaches to stemming their flow of plastic into the world — and turning the tide of public opinion.... View More
