Tetra Pak enters ice cream packaging category with 85% paper wrap

Tetra Pak has advanced into the ice cream category with its new Ice Cream Wrap made from up to 85% paper. The company says the packaging solution responds to increasing consumer interest in environmentally conscious packaging in the ice cream category. 

Peter Lindstrom, VP for Food Solutions at Tetra Pak, comments: “Ice cream is one of the world’s most loved food categories, and innovation now extends beyond flavors and formats. Packaging is becoming an increasingly important way for brands to differentiate, attract attention, and respond to changing consumer expectations.” 

“Tetra Pak Ice Cream Wrap gives producers a new way to create a distinctive consumer experience, combining the familiar appearance of paper with the functionality required for ice cream products.” 

Tetra Pak points to findings by Innova Market Insights’ 2024 Packaging Survey, which showed that nearly a quarter (24%) of consumers globally considered “sustainability” an important aspect of ice cream packaging and that 16% prefer paper packaging for the category. 

According to the producer, the Tetra Pak Ice Cream Wrap is made with up to 85% paper from FSC-certified forests and other controlled sources. The packaging is designed to help brands stand out on the shelf and to provide the performance required throughout the cold chain, Tetra Pak outlines. 

Upcoming commercialization 

Tetra Pak says that the Ice Cream Wrap is undergoing validation with ice cream producers across Europe, including the Swedish company Triumf Glass. 

Moa Frisk Lönnblom, marketing director at Triumf Glass, says: “Innovation is an important part of our business, and we’'re excited to explore how the Tetra Pak Ice Cream Wrap can create new opportunities in the ice cream category. It has the potential to offer consumers something different and help shape the future of ice cream packaging.” 

Tetra Pak adds that the trials are assessing the solutions’ performance in live production environments, while also gathering consumer insights ahead of wider commercialization of the packaging. 

The company says it will roll out the solution in phases starting in the fourth quarter of 2026 in Europe and plans to expand to additional markets in the future. 

Tetra Pak highlights that it brings over 70 years of expertise in paper-based food packaging and says that it has a deep understanding of ice cream production, which guided the development of the wrap. 

The company adds that it designed the wrap so it fits “the practical realities” of ice cream manufacturing. Its design features a thin profile and a multilayer structure that can protect products despite its materials efficiently, according to the producer. 

Last year, Packaging Insights spoke to ProAmpac, Sacmi, TNA Solutions, and Innova Market Insights about the trends they spotted in ice cream packaging. The companies emphasized the importance of flexibility, availability of small pack sizes, and environmental sustainability. 

 In the meantime, Lecta introduced a recyclable metalized paper designed for ice cream and frozen food packaging, and Huhtamaki launched home and industrially compostable ice cream cups made from paperboard. 

Also infor the ice cream category, PureCycle Technologies and Innovia Films produced and trialed white, cavitated biaxially oriented PP film with more than 40% post-consumer recycled PP content. 

For the broader sweet snack category, Tetra Pak recently partnered with China’s Shanghai Meilin to package its Asian soup desserts in its Tetra Recart carton for shelf-stable foods.