The Green Shoots of 4Evergreen

As many people in the carton industry will know, a new alliance was formed at the back end of last year called 4Evergreen to boost the contribution of fibre-based packaging in the circular economy. The alliance was initiated by CEPI (Confederation of Paper Industries) with the aim of increasing awareness about the benefits of fibre-based packaging materials, advocate for EU legislation supporting product design for recyclability and call for the development of optimised collection systems and appropriate recycling infrastructures. So far, 44 companies have signed up including several board mills and converters, along with other interested parties from across the supply chain including the likes of Nestlé, Danone and Mars. Whilst some readers will be familiar with what’s happened in the last few months, we thought it worth sharing the plans and aspirations of 4Evergreen with those that are not directly involved. 4Evergreen has been set up with a 2-3 year life expectancy with the aims of:

• Being a platform for collaboration and innovation in fibre-based packaging.
• Informing, educating, and engaging consumers as well as industry and policy makers
• Defining an industry strategy and mobilisation approach to further develop sustainable fibre-based packaging
• Developing transparency and traceability of sustainable supply chains
• Developing industry-recognised guidelines for packaging design
• Advancing optimised collection and recycling systems – and their accessibility
• Advancing environmental credentials through scientific facts

A substantial budget has been created and an official launch event is scheduled for next month. A Program Director is to be appointed who will lead the initiative. He/she will be supported by a PR agency, Interel, who will be responsible for preparing a communication strategy including key messages and positions, as well as a website. Interel is the largest independent public affairs and association management consultancy in the world with offices across the globe including Brussels. In addition, a firm of consultants are being appointed to help with the baseline mappings and initialisation of the workplans. 4Evergreen now has the structure and resources to make a significant impact in its aim to further increase the contribution of fibre-based packaging in the circular economy.