The most important function of packaging is to ensure a product’s safety to consumers. Packaging protects products during transport, prolongs their useful life and even conveys vital information about the product’s composition and use. Well-designed packaging facilitates the role of good transport and shelving and helps reduce waste throughout the supply chain.
Metsä Board's paperboards are lightweight and manufactured resource-efficiently using renewable fresh fibre that originates from sustainably managed northern forests.
Paperboards can reduce or replace the use of plastics in many packaging end uses and the application areas will widen as the properties of paperboards are further developed. In 2019, Metsä Board introduced an eco-barrier paperboard that is plastic-free and helps replace plastic also in end uses requiring medium grease and moisture resistance such as food service, fresh food, dry food and frozen food.
Designing packaging in a smarter way can have a big impact on sustainability – raw materials can be used more efficiently, and the package can be made more easy to transport, use and recycle. In cooperation with our customers, Metsä Board's packaging analysis and design services develops innovative, ecological and user-friendly packaging solutions that meet the needs of consumers of the future.
In terms of sustainability, the ideal packaging protects the packed product, is fit-for-purpose, saves resources and minimises the environmental impact across the value chain. Explore
Why packaging matters.

Our products can be recycled or composted
Metsä Board’s paperboard products are designed to be recycled. Using recyclable materials such as fresh fibre is an important way to save natural resources and support circular economy. In Europe, paperboard packaging has the highest rate of recycling when compared to other packaging material categories such as glass, metal and plastics. However, ultimately recyclability is still dependent upon the local collection and recycling options available in each market.
Paper and paperboard have many advantages when it comes to recycling:
- Paperboard is already now widely recycled – in Europe 85% of paper and paperboard packaging is collected for recycling. In the USA, the corresponding figure is 78%.
- Consumers can easily identify recyclable paper and board. Households are used to and willing to sort and separately bin paper and paperboard without any refund or cash incentive.
- Municipal collections for waste paper are well established.
In case recycling is not possible, Metsä Board’s paperboards can be composted. Our paperboards have DIN CERTCO certificates in industrial compostability complying with DIN EN 13432 and ASTM D6400 standards. The certified paperboards include all Metsä Board grades without a PE coating. In addition, eco-barrier paperboard MetsäBoard Prime FBB EB also holds a home compostability certificate (NF T 51-800). See our DIN CERTCO certificates.
