Crown van Gelder will start selling paper made with sugar beet in January 2021. This makes the Dutch paper manufacturer the first in the world to produce ‘sugar beet paper’ at an industrial level. The new product line called ‘Crown Native’ uses less wood fibres to achieve a reduced impact on the environment of 16% compared to traditional paper.

Crown Native was developed with the Dutch agricultural cooperative Cosun Beet Company as a strategic partner. The agricultural process residue from Cosun’s production process, beet pulp, forms a valuable resource for the paper. ‘Beet pulp is often processed into animal feed or converted into biogas’, says Miklas Dronkers, General Manager of Crown Van Gelder. ‘But by using it in our paper, it becomes a high-value resource.’

Crown Van Gelder’s new paper is the result of two years of research. The company investigated several crops to replace part of the wood fibres in the paper. With Crown Native, Crown Van Gelder has succeeded in creating paper made out of 20% beet pulp, thus achieving environmental gains in several areas. Due to the local sourcing, far less transport is required. As a result, Crown Native realises a significant reduction in CO2 emissions and particulate matter formation. Moreover, by using beet pulp, the production process requires less water. ‘And because we’re using a residual source, no additional agricultural land is needed,’ Dronkers adds.

A big advantage of using sugar beet pulp is that it is FDA compliant. ‘The pulp is classified as a former food product,’ Dronkers explains. As a result, Crown Native is approved and suitable for food packaging, unlike recycled paper for example. Dronkers: ‘This makes our sugar beet paper the ideal choice for product packaging, but also for shopping bags and promotional print. Crown Native is the perfect fit for brands with a sustainability ambition.’

Crown Van Gelder – Changing the world of paper
Crown Van Gelder produces around 180,000 tons of paper annually, for customers all over the world in the graphics, label and packaging industry. Through partnerships with both suppliers and purchasers, Crown Van Gelder achieves efficiency and savings in the entire paper chain. The almost 125-year-old company is known worldwide for its innovative products.