The judges of the European Carton Excellence Awards 2021 have crowned Durero Packaging’s Bodegas Balsamic as the ‘Carton of the Year’.
This year’s winner was announced during the virtual 2021 Carton Awards E-vent ceremony on 6 September, co-hosted by Pro Carton, the European Association of Carton and Cartonboard Manufacturers, and the European Carton Makers Association (ECMA).
To mark the 25th anniversary of the Awards, a new ‘Champions’ Trophy’ was presented to WestRock. The carton converter was praised for winning the ‘Carton of the Year’ title the greatest number of times since 1997, with a total of five wins.
The ‘Innovation Award’ went to Cardbox Packaging’s Karlo Spoon with cartonboard from Stora Enso.
The ‘Save the Planet’ award, for a product that significantly reduces or eliminates fossil-based materials, was presented to Graphic Packaging International and BillerudKorsnäs for the PaperSeal® MAP Tray Burger Solution.
The 2021 category winners were:
- Food & Drink, Virgin Fibre winner: Mergulo Plant Based Butter Carton
- Food & Drink, Recycled Fibre winner: Fruit Basket
- General packaging, Virgin Fibre winner: GER Coffer
- General packaging, Recycled Fibre winner: Plastic-free toothbrush packaging
- Public Award: Smarties Giant Hexatube
All the winners of the European Carton Excellence Awards 2021 can be found here.
Tony Hitchin, General Manager of Pro Carton said, “The quality of entries submitted this year was phenomenal. The European Carton Excellence Awards have exceeded expectations yet again and what better year to do so than on its 25th anniversary. All of the packs and solutions entered demonstrate why cartonboard is the material of the future and highlight the important role it will play in helping brands and retailers move towards a circular economy. The Awards make it clear that cartons protect and promote brands as well as the environment, thanks to the structural design and aesthetic finish that can be achieved coupled with the strong eco-credentials of fibre-based packaging. It was a pleasure to celebrate a quarter of a century of carton innovation, with live streamed interaction with the winners. Great to see so many happy people.”
