Design for recyclability of fiber-based packaging intended for food applications

The accumulation of plastic waste in terrestrial and marine environments, together with the widespread dispersion of micro- and nano-plastics, has emerged as a critical environmental challenge, driving the search for alternative packaging solutions. Within the context of the EU Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation (PPWR), industry is accelerating the shift toward fiber-based formats that maintain functionality while improving recyclability. This thesis investigates the design for recyclability of fiber-based food packaging. The study incorporates embodied energy (Hm) as key indicator, highlighting the lower production energy demand of fiber-based materials compared to plastics and aluminum, as well as the benefits of recycling over composting in retaining invested energy. The functional properties of seven fiber-based packaging formats were measured under standardized protocols and compared to the current specification. To enable a coherent cross-property analysis, measured values were converted into percentage deviations, adjusted with a penalty system, and aggregated, providing a compact indicator of how closely each option reproduces the target performance. In parallel, recyclability was evaluated for paper-mills utilizing conventional recycling processes, also considering paper content thresholds, in accordance with 4evergreen alliance guidelines. The outcomes of the two separate assessments were then integrated into a combined evaluation framework, enabling the development of a final ranking that encompassed all the analyzed formats.