Sustainability in packaging 

Conserve natural resources and reduce CO₂ emissions with our alternative materials and optimized packaging designs.

monomaterial sustainable packaging from Körber Pharma

Replace plastic pharmaceutical packaging with 100% monomaterial solutions made from renewable resources like cardboard, paper fibers, and grass paper. 

We support you in moving away from plastic, towards environmentally friendly packaging. Using innovative monomaterials and carton inserts, we can help you increase your supply chain efficiency, while lowering your carbon footprint. 

Performance & impact

In numbers

100%

Our monomaterial cardboard packaging and inserts are fully recyclable and biodegradable. 

>90%

Our sustainable packaging solutions can be produced on more than 90 percent of our packaging machines. 

95%

Using grass paper for packaging reduces CO2 emissions by up to 95% compared to virgin fiber pulp obtained from wood. 

Benefits

Reduce CO₂

Reduce your CO₂ footprint by switching to alternative raw materials like monomaterial, grass cardboard, or starch-molding inserts. 

Optimization

We help you conserve resources without compromising product functions or results, by optimizing packaging designs and supply chains. 

Material choice

Choose from 100% recyclable monomaterials, grass paper solutions, and cardboard inserts that replace plastic. 

Replacing plastic

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Photo of Lidia Smith.

"True sustainability is also smart business. Our monomaterial design significantly reduces packaging volume, which simultaneously cuts logistics costs, lowers CO₂ emissions, and simplifies recycling for the patient."

Lidia Smith

Sustainability & Product Manager Packaging Materials, Körber Business Area Pharma 

Innovation

Injection-molded paper fiber inserts 

By processing a mixture of paper pulp and plant starch, we create dimensionally accurate, impact-resistant molded parts that are ready for immediate use. This innovative paper fiber injection molding solution supports your sustainability goals by lowering CO2 emissions and utilizing renewable, biodegradable materials, while ensuring efficient sideload and topload compatibility for your operations. 

Key advantages 

  • Robust protection: Offers high dimensional accuracy and impact resistance to keep products safe. 
  • Lightweight: Weighs up to 50% less than comparable plastic packaging, reducing shipping weight. 
  • Sustainable: The material is fully recyclable and compostable. 
  • Clean handling: The surface of the injection-molded parts is dust-free and antistatic. 
  • Efficient storage: Units are stackable and space-saving. 
Badge of Sustainability Partner 2023

Recognition

Honored as ‘Sustainable Partner 2023’ by UCB

Körber has been awarded the ‘Sustainable Partner 2023’ honor by long-time biopharmaceutical partner UCB, recognizing over two decades of collaboration in sustainable pharmaceutical packaging. 

This distinction highlights our commitment to the Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi) and our Gold-status EcoVadis score of 72/100. Körber is also a member of the Alliance to Zero initiative, collaborating with industry partners to drive climate-neutral pharmaceutical packaging and accelerate the transition to net-zero emissions. 

Read more

Case study

Grass board packaging

Can patient safety and environmental responsibility go hand in hand? In partnership with PaperFoam and a global US biotech company, we took on the challenge to create a secondary packaging solution for autoinjectors that completely eliminates plastic.   

This case study reveals how we utilized grass paper and starch-based trays to create a 100% biodegradable package that reduces CO2 emissions by up to 95%, while maintaining full regulatory compliance and optimal patient handling. 

FAQs

Find out more about the environmental impact of our renewable packaging materials. 

Downloads

Documentation  

sustainable pharma packaging solutions brochure cover

Brochure: Sustainable packaging solutions 

From packaging design to material selection, learn about our solutions to reduce your carbon footprint

Our solutions

Explore our packaging materials solutions.

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Folding boxes

We create innovative folding boxes for pharma and life science products, meeting GMP, FDA standards and diverse packaging needs.

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Labels

We supply high-quality, compliant labels that ensure clear identification, safety and adherence to industry standards.

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Leaflets

Körber's pharma and life science leaflets are designed to meet the demands of accuracy, compliance and efficiency.

Körber customer service agent with customer

Get in touch

Speak to our specialists about our range of flexible, scalable, end-to-end solutions—tailored to you.