Sustainable Packaging at CB Paper Sacks
CB Paper Sacks manufacture Multi-Wall paper sacks for Milk Powder, Food Ingredients, Flour, Chemicals, Animal Feed and other Dry Food Product. Based in Bangor Northern Ireland with over 50 years’ experience in the paper sack manufacturing industry, supplying into Ireland, the UK and Continental Europe.
At each stage of the company’s development we have made continuous improvements to our environmental responsibilities, technical competence, product development and printing excellence.
As a cornerstone of the bio-based economy, our industry contributes to sustainable development that meets the requirements of modern packaging, conserves natural resources and protects the environment. By choosing CB paper sacks as packaging solutions for their dry bulk goods, producers and fillers are choosing the environmentally friendly option.
Natural, renewable and recyclable
- The fibres used to produce sack paper are 100% natural, renewable and biodegradable:
- Due to research into bio-barriers, the proportion of renewable materials in paper sacks will increase. This supports our approach towards a circular economy as well as the goals of the COP21 agreement (United Nations Climate Change Conference, December 2015, Paris), which focuses on minimising the use of all kinds of fossil fuels.
- CB Paper sacks contain up to 100% natural fibres.
Sustainably sourced
Sustainable forest management is a cornerstone of the value chain for paper sack manufacturers. The fibres are sourced from tree thinning and process waste generated by the timber industry, originating from sustainably managed forests. Sustainable forest management entails preserving biodiversity, productivity, regeneration capacity, and vitality while ensuring the integrity of all interconnected ecosystems. Sustainably managed forests fulfil pertinent ecological, economic, and social functions: they provide habitats for wildlife and recreational areas for humans, as well as employment opportunities and fostering economic prosperity.
Role in climate change mitigation
Forests play a pivotal role in mitigating carbon emissions. Thanks to the continuous replanting of trees, forests in Europe are expanding by 612 million cubic meters annually, as reported by the EU Green Source. Furthermore, a study conducted by ETH Zurich underscores the efficacy of worldwide afforestation as the most effective measure in combating climate change.
Low carbon footprint of paper sacks
For more than 15 years, the paper sack industry has run studies to measure its environmental impact, providing the basis for continuous improvement. The fossil carbon footprint for one average European paper sack is 86 gCO2e. Between 2018 and 2021, there was a very slight reduction (1%) in the fossil carbon impact per paper sack. Between 2007 and 2021, the carbon intensity of a single paper sack was reduced by 28%. When extending the analysis to include biogenic greenhouse gas emissions and removals, paper sacks are a climate-positive packaging solution. According to a study by RISE, the carbon footprint of paper sacks is 2.5 times smaller than that of PE FFS cement sacks.
