The Absolut Group, a premium international wines and spirits company, has successfully trialed an industry-first paper-based cap and bottle duo as part of the company’s ongoing vision to create a fully biobased bottle.
The cap is a collaboration with Blue Ocean Closures (BOC), a Swedish start-up that has formed a pioneer community to reduce plastics through fibre packaging innovation. The bottle and cap completed its first trial at an event in May, being put to the test by a community of bartenders.
Absolut has a history of working towards long-term environmental goals and pushing boundaries with its packaging. In 2023, the brand made waves with the launch of “Absolut Paper” in collaboration with Paboco (Paper Bottle Company). Absolut successfully trialled the single-mould paper-based bottles at select Tesco stores in the UK.
The cap’s pioneering design will in the first generation combine a body made of more than 95% FSC-certified fibres with a thin top-seal barrier made of plastic. The long-term ambition is to replace the plastic with a biobased material so the entire cap will be made of renewable materials. Already now a cap made primarily from renewable material opens the potential for reductions of carbon footprint compared to conventional materials such as aluminium. The cap will be recyclable as paper in markets that have recycling systems in place that can separate paper from other materials.
The paper-based cap is part of Pernod Ricard’s Future of Packaging initiative, which seeks to empower consumers and brands to commit to more conscious choices around the packaging of their spirits. The paper-based cap and bottle combination was trialled for the first time at the “Absolut The Map” event in May, where bartenders were able to put the new innovation to the test. The focus of the test was to evaluate functionality, handling and overall impression of the cap in “real-life” situations. The next steps on the development journey involve further quality testing, followed by a limited in-market trial.
