Crown Bevcan EMEA, Veronique Curulla: More and more consumers and brands are aware of the sustainability potential of metal packaging
• Automation & Robotics • Interview • South-East European INDUSTRIAL Мarket - issue 2/2023 • 24.04.2023
Veronique Curulla, Marketing and Business Development Director, Crown Bevcan EMEA, for South-East European Industrial Market Magazine
Kristal Kola has recently announced the launch of Türkiye’s first spring water in cans with Crown Bevcan EMEA as its packaging partner. Please tell us more about the project.
Kristal Kola (Kristal) is set to launch the Turkish market´s first spring water in sustainable packaging, with powerful messaging to match. The company selected Crown´s beverage team in Europe as its packaging partner. In addition to being able to produce the cans locally at its Osmaniye plant in southeast Türkiye, greatly reducing the brand’s carbon footprint, Crown provided input on sustainability statistics printed on the can itself. Displayed in both Turkish and English, the messaging is an integral part of the package design. The goal is to educate consumers about aluminum cans and their unparalleled sustainability credentials, as well as raise awareness about recycling, which is of the utmost importance.
RELATED ARTICLES
TaipeiPLAS and ShoeTech Taipei 2022 attracted over 12 500 visitors
Eco Wave 2022 to showcase latest technologies for the green economy
Development of the machine tool market in Türkiye and Bulgaria
Ecomondo 2021 back to its usual format
Croatia’s transition to circular economy backed by technical assistance from World Bank
The collaboration represents an important milestone for Kristal on its sustainability journey, making the impact and accuracy of the can’s messaging points and graphics critical. Water in cans is an important innovation for the traditional water industry; to be the first in the country to launch canned water will demonstrate Kristal’s support for improving the sustainability and accessibility of an increasingly strained global resource.
How will the circular economy benefit from the project? As a global manufacturer, what measures is Crown implementing at its own facilities in order to reduce its environmental impact?
The project with Kristal helps to increase the usage of the world´s most sustainable beverage packaging: the aluminum can. Beverage cans are part of the circular economy because metal is infinitely recyclable. After consumption, it can take as little as 60 days for a can to be sorted, recycled, and back on the shelves as a new can. Beverage cans have the ability to be recycled over and over again with no loss in performance or quality and currently stand as the most recycled beverage package in the world — with a significantly higher global average recycling rate than PET bottles. Additionally, recycling aluminum for use in new beverage can production saves 95% of the energy necessary for production from virgin materials, making the footprint of the beverage can even smaller.
In 2020, Crown took an exciting step on its sustainability journey with the launch of the Twentyby30 program, an ambitious set of targets addressing the most pressing sustainability issues of our time. Twentyby30 includes not only science-based targets for greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions reductions and water stewardship goals but also tackles areas of sustainability such as material circularity, employee safety, diversity and inclusion, responsible sourcing, and other environmental, social, and governance topics. As part of this program, we are collaborating with industry partners to drive even higher rates for beverage can recycling, as well as achieve zero waste to landfill and ultimately reach Net Zero status as an organization.
What can you tell us about market trends in the field of beverage packaging? What’s next?
Beverage cans have gained momentum across Europe, with demand growing for years and seeing significant acceleration from the COVID-19 pandemic and the interruption in the hospitality sector. Consumption of traditional categories in beverage cans grew further in the past few years, but so did smaller segments such as ready-to-drink options, primarily debuting in cans. Cocktails, iced tea, and coffee (particularly in Türkiye) as well as energy drinks have been massively adopted by consumers and are now part of a diversified beverage landscape. New products are disproportionately being introduced into cans, as more consumers and brands are aware of the sustainability potential of metal packaging. Being eco-friendly, recyclable, and convenient, the adoption of the beverage can is expected to grow further.
Crown operates a number of facilities in Southeast Europe. What’s the significance of the region in maintaining the company’s leading market position?
Crown has a historical footprint and a legacy as a market leader in the supply of beverage cans in the Southeast European region, which also extends to the Middle East. Our knowledge of the market and long-lasting relationships with beverage manufacturers in the region help us maintain our position as a leading supplier, but this also requires constant innovation, determination, and a continued understanding of customer and market needs.
Keywords: Crown Bevcan EMEA, Crown Holdings, Kristal Kola, beverage packaging, metal packaging, circular economy