SB'24 is happening this week! Can’t join the full event? — grab a One-Day or Activation Hub Pass!

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

Trending: With COVID-19, It’s 2 Steps Forward, 1 Step Back in Fight Against Single-Use Beverage Waste

While Starbucks trials a NextGen coffee cup solution, COVID-19 concerns lead to reusable cup bans around the globe. Meanwhile, a UK soft drink manufacturer rolls out beverages in seaweed cachets. Read More...

Trending: In Fashion, What’s Outside Also Counts

New partnerships aim to tackle the fashion industry’s packaging footprint — with circular solutions for polybags and MATCHESFASHION’s new, recyclable boxes furthering the cause. Read More...

Igniting the Healthy Building Materials Movement: A Conversation with Perkins&Will

Here, Mary Dickinson, co-director of Perkins&Will's Material Performance Lab, sheds light on the firm’s efforts related to the environments in which we live, work and play; the market drivers for those initiatives; and the challenges and keys to success along the way. Read More...

Anti-Plastic Regulation Risks Less Sustainable Alternatives

Faced with shortages of suitable recycled material, a growing consumer backlash and a hostile regulatory environment, it is no wonder that some companies are shifting away from plastics. But encouraging this shift towards material choices that do little to improve end-of-life environmental impact would be the worst possible outcome for the planet. Read More...

Trending: C&A, G-Star, Genomatica Set New Course for Sustainable Textiles

The two clothing giants and the leader in bioengineering have each achieved industry-first milestones with their latest innovations — which raise the bar for sustainable denim and biobased nylon. Read More...

Tools for Healthy Buildings — at All Price Points

The Healthy Building Network’s HomeFree initiative helps leaders in affordable housing "do better" through scientific guidance and educational resources. The following insights from Billy Weber, HBN’s Collective Impact Director, were taken from a recent webinar, hosted by Shaw. Read More...

#ItsInOurHands: How Cleansing Wipes Can Be Both Convenient and Sustainable

Fact: Most personal-care wipes contain plastic and therefore can become a burden on the environment. Lenzing‘s biodegradable VEOCEL™ fibers offer an alternative solution. We talked to Jürgen Eizinger, VP of Global Business Management, Nonwovens at Lenzing, about the future of wet wipes. Read More...

Report: Overhaul of Paper, Textile Industries Can Halt Climate, Extinction Crisis in a Decade

Canopy’s ‘Pulp Thriller’ outlines a plan to save the world’s forests and climate by replacing 50% of forest fiber from pulp manufacturing with next-generation, alternative fibers such as agricultural residues and waste cotton. Read More...

More Major Retailers Are Saying ‘Forever Chemicals No More’

To paraphrase Voltaire: “With great market power comes great responsibility.” Retail market leaders are setting the pace in the transition to safer chemistry in their products and packaging. Their actions add up to saying, “Forever chemicals no more.” Read More...

Midwestern Airport Uses ‘Green’ Products to Address Common Airfield Challenges

Following positive results from a trial run, Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky Int'l Airport is planning to continue using Nachurs' Alpine RF-14F® deicer for the 2019/2020 winter. Read More...

Uniting to Drive Change: The Cleaning Industry Bands Together for a Sustainable Future

We know, of course, that no matter how many bold ambitions a company has, it cannot change the world alone. But through collaborative effort, the impact companies can make is multiplied, often many times over. Read More...

Q&A: Why Sustainability Professionals Need Chemists

Chemistry may not be the first thing that comes to mind when one thinks of sustainability, but it has a big role to play, particularly in a circular economy. We caught up with Christoph Jäkel, BASF’s Head of Sustainability Strategy, to learn more about how BASF is working to improve our everyday lives. Read More...

The Plastics Industry Is Changing — Because It Has to

The plastics industry has become acutely self-aware. Directive targets must be met; new processes researched, developed and launched; and consumer education delivered. And looming over all of this is the spectre of sustainability, and the demonisation of plastics. Read More...

Life Cycle Analysis: Revealing the Unexpected Truth About Product Impacts

Typically, the stages in a product’s life cycle that have the greatest environmental effects also are the ones that present the best opportunity for sustainable innovation. If sustainability is part of the innovation process, then LCA should be conducted to ensure the avoidance of unintended consequences. Read More...

BASF Collaboration to Develop Closed-Loop Process for Recycling EV Batteries

The ReLieVe project will develop and scale the process and structuring of an integrated industrial sector — from collection and recycling of end-of-life batteries, to the manufacturing of new electrode materials. Read More...

Absolut, Coca-Cola, L’Oréal Join Carlsberg’s Efforts to Improve, Scale Paper Bottles

Carlsberg Group has unveiled the latest iterations of the world’s first paper beer bottle made from sustainably sourced wood fibers, along with a new ‘paper bottle community’ of brands dedicated to optimizing the technology. Read More...

DuPont-Stella McCartney Partnership Yields World’s First Bio-based Faux Fur

The pioneer in sustainable luxury apparel worked with DuPont Biomaterials and Ecopel to create the next generation of luxurious alternatives to fur, resulting in a sustainable faux fur made with Sorona® bio-based fibers. Read More...

Trending: Collaborations Fostering Next-Gen Solutions for Coffee Cups, Paper Packaging

Environmental NGO Canopy rallies apparel brands around better paper packaging; and six graduates of the NextGen Circular Business Accelerator prepare to bring their their sustainable coffee cup solutions to market. Read More...

Can There Be Harmony Between Plastics and Sustainability? Greiner Says Yes.

Plastics companies are key to solving our plastics problem. We spoke with Stefan Grafenhorst, Head of Sustainability at Greiner, to find out more about the path toward making plastic a sustainable material. Read More...

Meet the Latest 12 Startups Set to Change Fashion as We Know it

Innovations in garment fitting, recycling, intelligent machinery and a virtual garment marketplace are among the 12 new innovations joining the latest Fashion for Good-Plug and Play Accelerator Programme. Read More...

Upcoming Events

December 11-12, 2024
SB Member Network: Shifting Customer Behavior and Demand December Member Meeting
Member Event
More Information

March 18-19, 2025
SB'25 Tokyo Marunouchi
More Information