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necessary properties with it, can we develop new generations of the paper bottle and barriers.” These rst-generation single-mold bottles are made from 57% paper with an integrated barrier of recyclable plastic, more on that below.

Liner barrier material advances earn ‘ rst-generation’ moniker

The ‘ rst-generation’ moniker being applied to this launch “is referring to the amount of barrier material and how that material is applied,” Silbermann says. “Here, we use a thin preform that is blown into the bottle to form the barrier layer, which also brings a controlled neck nish with it.”

To nish the bottle, the plastic barrier is blown inside the paper shell and is separate from the molded material. It’s noteworthy that the barrier liner is more rigid than exible—it’s especially rigid in the neck area, where such rigidity is required to close and seal the bottle properly.

“The nish, including threads, is part of the inner barrier in this rst-generation bottle,” Näf says.

Read more about Absolut parent company Pernod Ricard’s wider sustainability efforts, including earlier stages of this paper bottle project, at pwgo.to/7973. Also, you can learn about Absolut’s testing of Blue Ocean Closures’ paperbased caps at pwgo.to/7974.

Despite its rigidity, the inside liner is thin and offers no structural support. Instead, all the structural support comes from the paper material.

“The paper is the foundation and will remain as we work towards our vision of a fully bio-based bottle,” Silbermann says. “But by applying the plastic barrier in a second step into the bottle, we can separate strength properties carried by the paper bottle, from the liner’s barrier properties. Since we are only using mechanical interlocking in this rst generation for the barrier application, the materials can be easily separated. However, it is not like a loose bladder, but a fully shaped barrier, to avoid being space inef cient.”

The rst-generation bottle uses a polyethylene naphthalate (PEN) barrier, which is a monomaterial with strong barrier properties that can be recycled along with closely related polyethylene terephthalate (PET) in small proportions. The PEN material was chosen for its properties and resistance/ability to perform with Absolut Vodka Original. Post-consumer recycled (PCR) material could be chosen for the general application, but was not possible to be used for high alcohol-byvolume (ABV) vodka. Lower ABV ready-to-drink (RTD) option Mixt brand Absolut drink was used in the earlier, festival-based tests of the format.

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“The advancement of this version of the paper bottle is for Absolut Vodka, which is 40% ABV and the challenges in holding higher alcohol rather than Mixt which was 5%,” says Näf. “The 40% ABV is challenging for many materials and therefore thorough testing is required. The barrier in the rst generation of the paper bottle is suitable for Absolut Original Vodka. The next generation bottle will undergo the same testing and approval processes before being released. The next version of the paper bottle will not be able to keep carbonated products, which made Absolut Original Vodka a logical choice for this test.”

Decoration and capping

Decoration entails applying digitally printed labels to lled, capped bottles. Consumers are not required to remove the labels before recycling, as they’re also printed on recyclable material.

“The technology does not yet support scalable printing of paper bottles. But the application of a label is not a problem at all since it’s done on lled bottles,” Näf says.

Also, previous iterations of Absolut’s paper bottle have experimented with a paper-based cap from Blue Ocean Closures. But since the Blue Ocean Fibre Cap is still in development and is not yet a commercially available option, the rst-generation paper bottles use a standard Absolut bottle cap, made from an inner plastic liner and an aluminum outer shell.

Fitting into the big picture

While standard glass bottles are also recyclable, paper bottles are eight times lighter, and according to the brand, easier to carry. Still, the end goal is for them to complement Absolut’s iconic glass bottle, not replace it. Absolut believes consumers will use the paper bottles in out-of-home occasions, such as festivals, parks, or beaches. This trial in particular aims to gain insights from consumers, retailers, and supply chain partners to inform the next steps on Absolut’s innovation journey towards a commercially viable, fully bio-based bottle. Absolut will test how the paper-based bottle transports and how consumers perceive it.

Absolut also says this represents an important milestone in becoming a carbon neutral product by 2030, a prerequisite for being able to meet this goal is in reducing the carbon footprint of its packaging. Absolut Vodka says it’s on track to be a carbonneutral product by 2030, with its distillery emitting 98% fewer emissions than the average distillery, according to Beverage Industries Environmental Roundtable (BIER) benchmarking study based on data from 2020. In November last year, it announced this initiative with Ardagh Glass Packaging to start using a partly hydrogen energy- red glass furnace for large-scale bottle production.

“Absolut Vodka has a rich heritage of collaborations and partnerships, and the brand is working towards developing packaging solutions that consumers want and our planet needs,” concludes Charl Bassil, global VP, Absolut. “Absolut remains committed to a sustainable future in which it continues to mix things up, with recyclable lighter paperbased bottles to complement Absolut’s iconic glass bottles. This groundbreaking test takes Absolut a step closer to that becoming a reality.”

Predecessors of the rst generation of commercially available paper bottles, tested at festivals in the UK and Sweden, contained lower alcohol-by-volume (ABV) Absolut Mixt ready-to-drink cocktails. A more challenging liquid, fully 40% ABV vodka, is contained in the new commercially available release.

So if this is the rst generation of paper bottle, what will the next generation look like? The ambition of achieving a fully biobased bottle has Paboco and Absolut looking at different materials and how they are sourced. Bio-based plastics is one of the streams they are investigating.

“Most important is always the functionality of the packaging, to safely carry the lling good during its lifecycle. We closely monitor all activities in the market on barrier development, and are even leading some of them with our partners, to always improve and better our solution. The next generation enables us to drastically reduce barrier content with a switch to a paper-formed neck, for example,” says Silbermann.

Adds Näf: “Beside striving for bio-based materials, our ambition is to utilize materials that can be recycled in existing waste streams.”

The 500mL single-mold paper bottles will be sold in 22 Tesco stores (RRP £16, or $18) across greater Manchester throughout the summer. PW

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