Wood foam packaging – what is it, and should you be using it?

Before detailing the pros and cons of the material, it is essential to answer the question: what is wood foam packaging?

Wood foam packaging is an alternative to polymer-based foams. It uses cellulose fibres derived from trees. As such, end users can easily recycle wood foam packaging alongside other paper-based packaging in kerbside collections. Wood foam is becoming popular for eCommerce packaging and gift box foam applications.

At present, there is only one type of wood foam packaging available, Fibrease® by Stora Enso. However, this is soon to be joined by another Stora Enso product, Papira®.

Both products are wood-based, but there are subtle differences between them.

Fibrease® is the first commercially available wood foam for packaging. Produced using sustainable Nordic wood, it provides good damping, cushioning and insulative properties.

Suitable conversion methods include die-cutting, waterjet cutting, sawing and laminating. Foam converters can use it to produce various packaging products, particularly foam-lined boxes and gift box foam.

However, its strongest selling point is that end users can easily recycle the material alongside the outer cardboard pack.

Papira® is another wood foam packaging material in development at Stora Enso. Although not currently available, Papira® offers the same benefits as Fibrease® but with the added benefit that it is also fully biodegradable.

Being biodegradable ensures that any Papira® material that does not find its way into recycling streams will decompose over time without leaving any plastic pollution.

Whilst Papira® is still in development, it is expected to offer performance similar to Fibrease®.

Wood-based foams also help to reduce plastic pollution. Papira® is fully biodegradable, and it and Fibrease® encourage end-user recycling through ease of use (being collected as part of kerbside schemes in the UK).

As such, plastic is much less likely to end up in the oceans/environment.

From a commercial rather than an environmental perspective, wood foam packaging provides a unique, attractive aesthetic appearance. Its white/neutral colouring makes it ideal if your brand positions itself as a sustainable option within your market.

Besides its appearance, wood foam packaging also provides a tactile experience for customers., being soft and pleasant to handle.

Although not offering the same level of performance as traditional foam packaging, wood foam can still provide suitable protection for a wide range of items in transit.

It protects items by retaining them within the pack, preventing multiple items from colliding with each other or the outer walls and becoming damaged. It also provides cushioning that absorbs shocks, impact and mishandling during transit.

Perhaps the most significant benefit of wood foam packaging is that it is considerably easier for your customers to recycle.

As previously mentioned, end users can simply place wood foam into the same recycling bins as paper and cardboard. Not only does this make your customer’s lives considerably easier, but it also significantly reduces the chances of recyclable material ending up in landfills.

Finally, using paper and wood-based packaging can have a surprisingly significant impact on the way consumers perceive your brand.

Many demographics now indicate a strong preference for more sustainable businesses, and shipping products in easily recyclable packaging made using natural materials is a big plus point for these consumers.

Whilst wood foam provides cushioning for items in transit, its performance levels are not (currently) as high as the specialist polymer-based foam such as Stratocell, Ethafoam and Plastazote. Unlike these traditional foams, it is also not possible to use software to calculate the precise amount and type of wood foam material required to provide specific levels of performance.

As such, if you have particularly fragile, expensive or important items that simply cannot be damaged in transit, it may still be better to use a plastic-based (or recycled) foam material.

Depending on the conversion method, wood foam has the potential to create noticeable amounts of dust over time.

Whilst this is not a problem for most products, it makes wood foam packaging unsuitable for any that may be damaged or have reduced lifespan from exposure to fibres (particularly electronic components). It may also rule the material out for any high-end products or applications, depending on your brand positioning and customer expectations.

The other implication here is the potential health and safety issue for packing staff that may handle large volumes of the material.

Whilst suitable wood foam conversion methods include sawing, laminating, die cutting and forming with a waterjet, it is not possible to use a CNC router to create recesses within the material.

As such, for very intricate products, it may be challenging to get a precise fit within the foam, unlike with polymer-based options. Again, this may be a problem for high-end applications or where transit protection is the primary concern.

As a relatively new material, wood foam packaging is currently more expensive than traditional plastic-based foams.

Another key point to consider here is that wood foam packaging is not, unlike polymer foams, subject to the UK plastic packaging tax. As such, the overall cost difference is reduced somewhat.

Arguably, the application wood foam is most suitable for is gift box packaging.

Wood foam is ideal for creating inserts for both retail and presentation packs and is already becoming popular amongst cosmetics and healthcare products (this is particularly true of brands marketing themselves as organic and/or sustainable).

Another market taking a strong interest in wood foam is eCommerce packaging.

In this scenario, wood foam can replace excessive use of plastic-based void fill (such as polystyrene packing peanuts). Wood foam not only provides improved protection and appearance but also the critical benefit of ease of recycling.

Many businesses use standard “foam-lined boxes” for their postal and eCommerce shipments. Wood foam may be suitable to replace the plastic foam typically used for the lining, providing similar performance at a similar cost.

Finally, as wood-based foams provide good insulative properties, they have the potential for use for temperature-controlled packaging (i.e. to keep food or other sensitive items at a safe temperature during delivery).

Although a relatively new material, a number of businesses are already considering wood-based foam packaging.

However, due to the differences in protective performance, longevity, cost and recyclability, it is not always a straightforward switch. However, there is a wide range of applications where using wood foam could have benefits for your business.

Having been converting foams of all types for over 30 years, we can provide impartial advice on whether you should seriously consider switching.

So, if you would like further information and advice on wood foam packaging, please do not hesitate to get in touch.

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