A new packaging design makes it easy to separate paper from plastic

Paper drinks cartons are used for many of our most-beloved beverages – from milk to orange juice. In fact, on average, around 900,000 tonnes of beverage cartons are put on the market in Europe each year, with the majority being used for dairy products. The paper exterior of these cartons provides consumers with a comforting sense of sustainability, and it is true that they can be recycled at scale. However, in standard drinks cartons, the paper is interspersed with layers of plastic. These layers must be separated using a special process that is expensive and not readily available in every region.

To combat this, designer Pushan Panda has developed a packaging design—called Bruk—that allows consumers to easily separate the layers by tearing the paper carton in half. The inner HDPE liner can then be easily removed and recycled separately from the cardboard. This means that the whole carton is recyclable using standard equipment. Bruk also uses less plastic overall than a conventional carton.

Springwise