Metsä Board: Sustainable paperboards for the next generation packaging solutions

“The key to premium brands is to maintain and develop a premium positioning, but at the same time meet the consumer demands for sustainable packaging. Our improved range of folding boxboards offers further possibilities for light-weighting while keeping the premium looks. Combined with innovative packaging design, we can help brands achieve an even more sustainable packaging solution. I therefore believe our role is to inspire brand owners, converters and designers with packaging solutions of the future,” explains Christophe Baudry, Metsä Board’s Sales Director, Brand Owners Beautycare & Healthcare.

Meeting the latest trends

To demonstrate how paperboard can boost brand appeal, Metsä Board has designed a new set of packaging samples. The samples demonstrate the various finishing effects and how the paperboard surface can enhance them and create impressive visual and tactile effects. The samples have been designed to inspire end-users in sectors such as food, beautycare, pharmaceuticals, luxury packaging and graphic applications. The samples are produced using the enhanced Metsä Board folding boxboard portfolio.

The organic cosmetics sample has an uncoated surface with a multilayer embossing that give a special touch and feel. White and gold hot foil stamping adds a luxurious finish to the packaging. The chocolate sample also uses a multilayer embossing with a metallic appearance added to the CMYK printing on silver PE laminate in the text area.

The most demanding sample is the headset packaging that combines various effects requiring many features from the paperboard. The cover of the box is first hot-foiled, then printed with white and CMYK, and finally, a multilayer embossing, were added to give touch and feel. On the front of the packaging there are tone changes made with grey drop shadows which require a high level of smoothness from the board. On the side of the box there is a silver hot-foil in the background with CMYK printing combining micro-embossing and a multilayer embossing. Keeping a rich black colour and small white text on the back of the packaging requires excellent printing properties from the board.

The samples display the desire for natural and organic packaging in the market and show how luxury finishing such as multilayer embossing, micro embossing, glossy varnishes, hot foil stamping, can really add the WOW factor to everyday items. "The samples have been designed taking into consideration what the market is looking for such as the increased use of uncoated boards, especially in cosmetics, with a surface that is highly receptive to special effects and finishing. Sustainability is a key issue and our boards are lightweighted to give bulk and stiffness with the use of less raw materials," says Ilkka Harju, Packaging Services Director, Metsä Board.