The Smurfit Kappa Group is a leading global producer of packaging paper-based, with nearly 45,000 employees spread over about 370 production sites in 35 countries, and with a turnover of EUR 8.6 billion in 2017. The Smurfit Kappa Group is the European leader of paper-based packaging, operating in 22 countries, also located in 13 countries in the Americas. The company provides products in corrugated board, bag-in-box, and cardboard flat, ranging from ready-to-sell packaging to the heavy-duty and the pallet made in cardboard. The Smurfit Kappa Group also has a positioning key markets such as the graphic papers, tissue paper, and paper bags.
Two departments of the Smurfit Kappa Group contribute to the INGREEN project:
Smurfit Kappa Bag-in-Box, a partner in the INGREEN consortium, is a subsidiary that provides solutions of flexible packaging for liquid or viscous food and industrial products while satisfying the constraints of costs and new regulations regarding the environment. With over 35 years of experience, Smurfit Kappa Bag-in-Box is the European leader in Bag-in – Box® and its tap solutions Vitop® is the world number 1 of the taps for the wine.
Role of Smurfit Kappa Bag-in-Box in INGREEN:
- Producing bags from the films as part of the project at a laboratory and industrial level
- Measuring the mechanical performance and permeability of the films and bags
- Characterization of biodegradable film with regard to the mechanical, welding, oxygen barrier, sensory and migration properties.
- Assessing the performance of the PHA based bag to existing and new innovative solutions
- Testing the performance of the PHA based bag in box with regard to machinability, filling, transportation processes and required shelf life.
Smurfit Kappa Ania, one of the production sites of Smurfit Kappa Italia S.p.A., will also contribute to the INGREEN project. Smurfit Kappa Ania is a paper mill producing more than 200,000 tons of recycled containerboard, located in Tuscany (Lucca province).
Role of Smurfit Kappa Ania in INGREEN:
- Supporting the characterisation of paper mill side-streams
- Determining the best operational conditions useful for the design of the demo scale prototype reactors
- Optimizing technologies for paper milling wastewater pre-treatments
- Testing demo prototype reactor
- Providing enriched PHA biomasses for feed formulations
