Northern European food company HKScan has made progress towards a carbon neutral food chain by introducing Woodly’s wood-based plastic packaging to the Finnish market in HK Maakarit’s artisan grilled sausages and Kariniemen’s grilled sausage series during the summer of 2021. HKScan aims to make the company’s own industrial production carbon neutral by the end of 2025, and to achieve carbon neutrality throughout the farm-to-consumer value chain by the end of 2040 at the latest. The introduction of a carbon neutral Woodly® component in this type of packaging is part of HKScan’s responsibility programme. The Woodly® component reduces the carbon dioxide emissions of the finished packaging film by approximately 50% compared to traditional plastic packaging.
“At HKScan, we are constantly improving the use of packaging materials in our product packaging. In addition, we map more environmentally friendly materials and create packaging solutions that reduce food waste and extend the shelf life of products,” said Mikko Järvinen, marketing director of HKScan Finland.
For the application of Woodly’s wood-based plastics in HK Maakarit and Kariniemen’s respective sausage products, HKScan has partnered with Woodly Oy, the developer of the wood-based plastics, and packaging manufacturers Wipak as the developer of the packaging film.
The main raw component in Woodly® material – coniferous cellulose – comes from certified, sustainably managed forests. The renewability of the material makes it a viable replacement for fossil-based packaging materials. Woodly film produced by Wipak has the same properties as conventional film used for these kinds of packaging applications.
Wipak focuses on renewable resources that are suitable for food applications, such as Woodly®. All their sustainable product innovations are based on the reduction of the use of virgin plastic raw materials – the company strives for the market introduction of innovative renewable raw materials like Woodly®. Alongside its proud partners, HKScan and Woodly, Wipak is taking the lead within the food packaging industry and taking strides towards producing completely carbon neutral packaging solutions.
