Metsä Board, part of Metsä Group, has been selected as one of the winners in the 2024 WorldStar awards for their ultralight pizza box concept developed together with Adara Pakkaus and other industry experts. A total of 435 entries from 41 countries were included in this year’s competition.

The awarded ultralight pizza box solution, made of MetsäBoard Natural WKL Bright, uses considerably less material than traditional solutions without compromising rigidity, function or print quality. The pizza box was about 38% lighter and, according to the life cycle analysis, the pizza box’s carbon footprint was up to 50% lower than those of traditional solutions made of recycled fiber. The environmental impact comparison was carried out on material and its production.*

The ultralight packaging concept was created in cooperation with a leading expert of the packaging industry. Packaging manufacturer Adara Pakkaus produced the corrugated material and printing of the pizza box, with Marvaco supplying the flexo printing plates. The graphics were designed by Futupack. Researcher and expert on ECG Expanded Gamut printing, Dr. Kai Lankinen, provided input on the graphic design, prepress, and flexographic printing requirements.

The World Packaging Organization (WPO) has been organizing the WorldStar awards since 1970 to recognize the best in packaging innovations from across the globe. The objective is to bring forth advancements in packaging design and technology, especially in response to new challenges and global trends such as sustainability.

Only packaging solutions that have been previously awarded in a recognized national or regional competition are eligible to participate. Previously, Metsä Board’s pizza box concept was awarded a 2023 ScanStar, a competition organized by the Nordic packaging industry associations.

* Metsä Board follows process category rules for processed paper and paperboard which are based on ISO 14040/14044 life cycle assessment standards when assessing environmental impacts of its paperboards. For comparative assertions, external datasets from Sphera have been utilized. These datasets represent typical products on the EU markets. Comparison excludes paperboard converting processes. Climate Change methodology used in the assessment was EF3.0 Climate Change – Total.