July 01: There has been a sharp fall in the use of cork as closures in the last 20 years and now the wine industry may soon witness a paper bottle made from 94% recycled paperboard with a food-grade liner called the Frugal Bottle, already introduced by an Umbrian winery, Cantina Goccia, writes Subhash Arora who feels it might compete with the niche categories like plastic bottles and aluminium cans
The Frugal Bottle, is the brainchild of British packaging firm Frugalpac manufacturing at the Ipswich factory, which specialises in sustainable packaging and already creates and supplies recycled paper-based products with low carbon footprints, that can be recycled easily.
The first historical wine has been bottled by the Italian winery Cantina Goccia near Perugia in Umbria. The 3Q label is an unwooded Sangiovese of 2017 vintage with a hint of Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon slated to sell at £13 online. The earlier 2016 vintage in glass bottle is priced at £11. The cost of the bottle is otherwise comparable with glass bottle. When refrigerated, wine keeps cooler for a longer period.
Frugal Bottle is much lighter weighing only 83gms, about 20% of the normal glass bottle making it cheaper to transport. It’s better for the environment because of much lower carbon foot prints, at 1/6th. It is more than a third less than a bottle made from 100% recycled plastic.
It’s easy to recycle again. It even uses less plastic than a plastic bottle-. only 15g compared to a 64g bottle made from 100% recycled plastic. The shape allows for 360-degree branding across the bottle. Apparently the wine producers can produce the bottle in their bottling facility with freedom to design and print their choice.
The Frugal Bottle is also under active consideration by a number of leading UK supermarket chains and hospitality groups keen to promote sustainable packaging. It may soon be available from retail outlets across the UK, in Denmark, and Holland. UK imports more than 1.6 billion bottles of wine a year.
Ceri Parke, owner of Cantina Goccia is pleased making the history and says he is happy with the sustainable form of packaging for an industry crying out for innovation that will help them decarbonise the drinks industry. “When some of our top hotel customers saw samples of our paper wine bottle, there was no hesitation in their minds that this type of bottle would be well received in their dining rooms. The launch of this bottle is a big leap in sustainability without compromising wine quality.
Thankfully, they do not recommend sustainable glasses for consumption.
Subhash Arora
If you Like this article please click on the Like button