Mondi and Amazon team up to bag three prestigious sustainable packaging awards

Mondi, a global leader in sustainable packaging and paper, and Amazon have won a total of three packaging awards from the industry forums 4evergreen and Sustainable Packaging Summit and during this year's ALL4PACK fair. These awards highlight the companies’ long-term partnership to design and bring to market innovative, paper-based packaging that is easier to pack and for customers to open and recycle.

Honouring the best efforts and innovations in reducing packaging waste and promoting sustainability, the Sustainable Packaging Summit, ALL4PACK and 4evergreen spotlight companies that excel in this domain through these prestigious awards. These accolades highlight the transformative impact of an innovative approach in realising sustainable packaging solutions.

The Protective Mailer was honoured with the award for fibre-based packaging products designed for circularity at this year’s 4evergreen conference, held in early November in Brussels. Recognised as a standout success story, the solution also took the stage in Paris, receiving the 2024 ALL4PACK Innovation Award in the recycling category. Most recently, it earned the Sustainable Packaging Award at the annual Sustainable Packaging Summit in Amsterdam on 12 November, in the category of E-Commerce. This impressive sequence of awards highlights the exceptional impact of the Protective Mailer as an innovative, sustainable solution for eCommerce packaging, celebrated across Europe for its customer value and commitment to sustainability.

To address customers' desire for right-sized, easily recyclable packaging that minimises waste and ensures damage-free delivery, the Mondi eCommerce team worked with Amazon’s team of engineers and packaging scientists to develop sustainable packaging that provides protection equivalent to that of traditional bubble-wrap plastic-padded envelopes.

The new Protective Mailers, the latest addition to Mondi’s sustainable eCommerce portfolio, come in three sizes and are made entirely from Mondi’s strong yet lightweight kraft paper and open-flute material. This combination offers packaging that is recyclable and optimised for weight, flexibility and impact resistance. The open-flute padding provides the necessary cushioning while keeping the weight low, making it ideal for protecting customer orders through Amazon’s supply chain.

“Mondi is proud to have collaborated closely with Amazon to create these Protective Mailers for a more sustainable eCommerce,” says Nedim Nisic, Mondi Group eCommerce Director. “Receiving recognition for these products from all three organisations showcases the positive impact new packaging can have on our customers, consumers and the overall environment. Consumers across Europe have started to see these Protective Mailers showing up on their doorsteps since autumn this year, and we are proud this solution has also been recognised by industry forums.”

“A few years ago, we set out with Mondi on an ambitious task, to invent a 100% paper-padded envelope that is equally light, shock-resistant and protective as a plastic bubble wrap envelope, while being recyclable in household recycling, and together with a world-class team of packaging scientists and engineers, we made it happen,” says Thais Blumer, European Head of Sustainable Packaging for Amazon. “I hope this breakthrough will benefit the entire packaging industry, as we all work towards the same goal of reducing packaging and increasing recyclability”.

When packages are the right size, Amazon can fit more in every van, leading to fewer van journeys. This, in turn, helps with Amazon’s goal to be net-zero carbon across its operations by 2040. Paper-padded envelopes can also be placed in European household recycling.