Mondi equips Easy2cool with paper-based insulation for frozen food e-commerce

13 Jul 2023 --- Mondi is teaming up with Easy2cool to replace plastic insulation packaging with a paper-based solution for e-commerce. Easy2cool will utilize Mondi’s Functional Barrier Paper wraps with paper-based insulation material to ship frozen and chilled food products.

E-commerce customers can replace Easy2cool’s plastic and polystyrene layer with paper, providing a recyclable solution. The cold chain solutions provider has invented a paperfloc Eco-Liner bag that contains shredded recycled paper to insulate cold products, keeping contents frozen or chilled for up to 48 hours. 

“We have trialed several different barrier papers, but chilled and frozen products have specific requirements, and Mondi’s Functional Barrier Paper meets all our requirements. Customers using the corrugated box can save up to 70% of the costs associated with the previous option of a polystyrene box, due to the reduced storage space used by the new foldable solutions,” explains Marco Knobloch, founder and general manager of Easy2cool.

“Another solution in our portfolio is combining a Mondi’s corrugated box with paperfloc insulation and our Easy Akkus product to make a disposable cooler box that delivers reliable cooling for four days.” 

Cross-industry application
Before working with Mondi, the outer layer around the insulation material from Easy2cool consisted of mono-PE, now replaced with Mondi’s recyclable FunctionalBarrier Paper.

Easy2cool’s new paper-based insulation can keep contaminants cool for up to four days.The Functional Barrier Paper ensures that no condensation water – naturally occurring during the insulation process – reaches the insulation material where it could compromise its integrity. It also seals the packaging, offering a shock-absorbent outer layer to keep the contents safe.  

“Shipping fresh and frozen food products effectively and sustainably has always been challenging,” says Thomas Lunz, industry group manager for Functional Paper at Mondi. 

“By using our Functional Barrier Paper, Easy2cool can work toward its targets of using resources efficiently to deliver the protection of temperature-sensitive goods anytime, anywhere. While the original application was developed for fresh and frozen food, the solution can also be used for pet food, cosmetics and pharmaceuticals.” 

Easy2cool’s customers can opt to deliver their goods in “responsibly sourced” packaging created from renewable resources in the form of insulated pouches or liners within a corrugated box. Both options have been certified recyclable by Institut cyclos-HTP. 

Knobloch says the cooling solution is “perfect” for festivals as it keeps the content cold for days. The companies add that the insulation packaging is easy to dispose of in existing paper recycling streams throughout Europe.

Mondi in the news
Mondi recently expanded its Functional Barrier Paper range through investments in scaling up its product capacity on production lines, new technology and equipment to support customers with more environmentally sustainable packaging solutions.

Furthermore, the company expanded its paper packaging range to IQ Grass + packaging. The solution combines up to 30% grass fiber and 70% FSC or PEFC-certified fresh fiber pulp. The company says grass is one of the world’s fastest-growing and most ecologically successful plants. 

By Sabine Waldeck