Paper-based mini bottle for Baileys liqueur

In partnership with PA Consulting, as part of the Bottle Collective with PA and PulPac, Diageo is trialling a Dry Molded Fiber bottle which is 90% paper with a thin plastic liner and a foil seal.

The bottle is designed for recycling in standard paper streams and does not require the consumer to separate the plastic liner from the paper bottle when disposing. The 2000-bottle trial with consumers on the Baileys mini format (80 mL) was held at a festival in Spain during May.

The trial was used to test how the bottles travel from the filling site to the destination, along with how consumers interact with the material and how they understand the sustainability credentials of the paper bottle.

Ewan Andrew, President, Global Supply Chain & Procurement and Chief Sustainability Officer, Diageo, commented: “When it comes to our packaging, we’re taking an approach of progress over perfection, knowing our packaging will need to evolve along with consumer needs and technological advancements. The consumer is becoming more sustainability savvy and we believe we can meet that need using our design and innovation to bring premium products and more sustainable solutions together.”

Diageo is exploring paper formats across its wider portfolio. It continues to test its concept Johnnie Walker paper-based bottle, which is still in development phase, along with other paper-based bottle concepts.

In development now is a Diageo-designed, spiral-wound paper-based bottle with Don Papa, the Filipino rum brand. The bottle is in feasibility testing and is expected to be 90% paper-based. The bottle is designed to remove the cardboard gift box around the bottle to give the illusion of a gift box which is in fact the whole bottle.

The company is also trialling lightweighting its glass bottles using a novel coating developed by EXXERGY.