Mondi to revolutionise shopping bag market with new kraft machine

Packaging Solutions

Mondi has started up its new speciality kraft papermachine at its Štětí mill in the Czech Republic. The €67 million investment in the machine makes it Europe’s first dedicated papermachine for speciality kraft paper grades made out of fresh and recycled fibre for retail and online shopping bags.

The papermachine will produce up to 130,000 tonnes of speciality kraft paper per year, meaning Mondi will have one of the largest product portfolios for consumer shopping bags in Europe. This includes white and brown virgin grades and now recycled paper grades that can be used in a range of bag applications from fashion stores to online grocery platforms and home deliveries. The EcoVantage two-ply paper produced on the new machine consists of recycled and sustainably sourced fresh fibres and is 100% recyclable.

The European speciality kraft paper market is expected to grow strongly driven by legislation to eliminate waste caused by plastic shopping bags and consumer preference to move away from single use plastic.

Kalle Taari, head of strategy and product management kraft paper, Mondi, said: ‘We want to offer converters and brand owners sustainable, 100% recyclable paper based products for their retail and online shopping packaging. The papers produced on this machine will offer recycled fibre based products with a natural look, great printability and strength properties, all prerequisites for consumer shopping bags. We are excited to be rolling out several options from our EcoVantage range throughout 2021.’