Raise a Glass, Save a Forest: Cheers to a Greener Future with Every Brew!

Have you ever thought that your favourite beer could play a part in saving forests? It’s true! The beer and spirits industry is at the forefront of a significant shift towards more sustainable practices, particularly in paper packaging.

The Issue at Hand

We are currently facing an unprecedented climate and biodiversity crisis. A significant factor driving these emergencies is the extensive loss of Ancient and Endangered Forests. Since pre-agricultural times, approximately a third of the world’s forests have been cleared. Despite the growing body of scientific evidence and international agreements underscoring the irreplaceability of primary forests, they continue to be logged at alarming rates. In the past 20 years alone, the tropics have lost 72.5 million hectares of primary forests — an area twice the size of Germany.

Paper packaging production volumes have increased by 65% over the past two decades due in part to the rise in e-commerce and the shifts from plastic packaging into paper packaging. The food and beverage sector is the largest end-users of paper packaging, but this sector also has a mixed track record of adopting and implementing forest sourcing policies that fully ensure that their paper packaging is not driving pressure on the world’s Ancient and Endangered Forests. 

The Problem With Paper

When drinking a beer from a can, bottle or glass it’s easy to  forget that those cans/bottles are packaged together in a case which is made from paper, and very often a tree that is older than your grandparents was cut down to package that beer. Many assume that paper packaging is a benign replacement for single-use plastic, which is wreaking havoc on marine ecosystems. While addressing plastic pollution is crucial, paper packaging made from virgin forest fibre also has significant environmental impacts. We must avoid solutions that lead to unintended consequences, such as forest destruction, and instead implement lasting solutions that protect our planet. Simply swapping one environmental disaster for another is not a viable solution. 

Recycled fibre and Next Generation fibres, like wheat straw and agricultural residues, are effective and increasingly available for packaging. These alternatives help keep forests standing, reduce plastic use, and protect our climate. Moving away from single-use products and investing in reusable packaging can further reduce impacts on both oceans and forests. 

While FSC certification is a minimum precaution, it is insufficient to meet increasing demand, and many brands do not prioritize FSC fibre. As a result, new demand for paper packaging intensifies logging pressure on unprotected, ecologically critical forests. It is crucial for consumer goods companies to view paper packaging as a high-risk commodity that requires particular attention.

What Are Beverage Companies Doing About This Critical issue? 

Beer and beverage companies use paper packaging for cartons, boxes, and carriers. While many consumer goods companies across the food and beverage space have adopted forest sourcing policies that address pulp and paper, beer and alcohol companies have largely lagged behind. Of the top 100 consumer goods companies in 2023, 26 are beverage companies, with about half of these focus primarily on alcoholic beverages. While many of these companies have made commitments to sustainable packaging, most of these commitments focus on recyclability. Alarmingly, only one has a comprehensive forest sourcing policy, and that does not include paper.

But too many beer, wine, and spirits companies are moving to paper packaging, at the expense of the world’s Ancient and Endangered Forests. For example:

• Labatt Brewery (AB InBev) has replaced plastic rings on at least some of its brands with a paper-based ‘clip’.
• Molson Coors Brewing Company has replaced plastic rings on all major UK brands with cardboard sleeves.
• Carlsberg, Diageo, and Absolut (Pernod Ricard) have experimented with paper bottles.
• Diageo is trialing a paper bottle for Bailey’s.

These changes, while intended to reduce plastic waste, are worsening the issue by increasing the risk of sourcing paper from climate-critical forests. 

A Path Forward

There is reason to celebrate! Canopy has an ambitious plan to eliminate the use of ecologically critical forests in the paper, packaging, and textile supply chains. By scaling an additional 60 million tonnes of low-carbon Next Gen fibre production by 2033, Canopy aims to replace one-third of the world’s virgin pulp supply and prevent an estimated 1.3 billion tonnes of GHG emissions.

Next Gen fibres, made from agricultural residues like wheat straw, barley straw, rice straw, and sugarcane bagasse, offer a sustainable alternative to traditional paper. Packaging can even be made from spent brewer’s grains. These circular solutions help brands reduce unnecessary emissions attributable to packaging and save vital forests. Corona, has already trialed Next Generation alternative-fibre carriers made from barley straw. And Veuve Cliquot, one of Canopy’s Pack4Good partners, launched an Ecoyellow gift box, made from 50% recycled paper and 50% hemp! Many of the fibre alternatives to plastic such as carrier clips and paper bottles can be made from molded fibre, a type of packaging format that can easily accommodate alternative non-wood fibres rather than forest fibre. 

This means that the beverage sector has a unique opportunity to adopt packaging goals that do not threaten the world’s Ancient and Endangered Forests.

The beer and spirits industry has a significant role to play in the shift towards sustainable packaging. By adopting innovative solutions and comprehensive forest sourcing policies, beverage companies can help protect the world’s Ancient and Endangered Forests. So, the next time you raise a glass, remember that your choice of brew could be helping to save a forest.

Cheers to a greener future,

Ivy Schlegel, Pack4Good Strategy Lead