HP has announced the acquisition of packaging development company Choose Packaging for an undisclosed amount.

Choose, an Edinburgh-based company which has developed a commercially available zero-plastic paper bottle, will be integrated into HP’s Personalization & 3D Printing business. Through the Personalization & 3D Printing business unit, HP introduced its Molded Fiber Advanced Tooling technology in September 2020 as part of an effort to provide more sustainable moulded fibre packing designs for companies in the food service, consumer product, medical and industrial sectors.

As the company looks to expand its commitment to more sustainable packaging it has sought to acquire Choose. Choose has developed a technology that can produce paper-based packaging products that are made with natural and non-toxic materials. Already, Choose has secured work with Accolade Wines, who boast brands like Hardys, Banrock Station and Grant Burge; Henkel, a leading consumer and industrial goods company; and Malibu Rum, an international brand of Pernod Ricard.

Choose has agreed to be integrated into HP’s Personalization & 3D Printing business on the basis that the company will help to facilitate the scaling up of its technology.

“As a plastic-free packaging development company, we’ve successfully created technology that can provide a viable alternative to plastic bottles to help eliminate single-use PET packaging,” commented James Longcraft, founder and Managing Director of Choose Packaging. “HP’s world-class capabilities and expertise can help scale our impact at a global level. We are thrilled to join the HP team and couldn’t have chosen a better match in terms of our shared goals for business, technology, sustainability and a values-oriented culture.”

“Not only do we want to offer a tooling solution, we want to lead this transformation,” HP’s Global Head of Molded Fiber Mariona Company told TCT. “This represents a big challenge. If you think about replacing single use plastic, this is a $10 billion market ready for disruption. Our approach is enabling that transformation with fibre-based products that are 100% plastic free, that are coming from nature, so we borrow from nature what we can return to nature. This is our principle, and we really want to stand behind that.”

Bringing their respective technology and expertise together, HP and Choose have the aim of scaling up their sustainable packing products into mass volumes. When working with new and existing clients, they will assess the feasibility of the product that needs packaging, design the pack or container, and then head into production with the support of moulds produced with HP’s 3D printing technology. It will then go through labelling and post-processing – labelling is also made from 100% recycled paper and printed with bio-inks. After use, Choose products are said to degrade within a year.

“At Accolade Wines, we put innovation and sustainability at the heart of everything we do in our mission to be the world’s most innovative wine company,” said Sandy Mayo, Chief Marketing Officer at Accolade Wines. “We are excited to see Choose join a recognised leader like HP who puts these topics at the top of its agenda.”

“Henkel drives active progress towards a circular economy by creating smarter packaging for the benefit of people and the planet,” added Berthold Schreck, R&D Vice President Laundry Care at Henkel. “Choose and HP bring together a game-changing combination of packaging technologies and we are excited to collaborate to develop new sustainable packaging solutions and reduce plastics in our consumer goods products.”

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