Beer Giant Turns Discarded Barley Straws into Packaging

In a mission to protect the environment, a Mexican beer company is presenting a circular form of packaging made mainly from barley straw – the leftover of beer’s essential ingredient – to avoid using virgin trees in their supply chain.

“We’re deeply connected with nature and appreciate all that it has to offer, so we want to continue to do our part to protect it,” says Felipe Ambra, Global Vice President of Marketing, Corona. “Our deep reverence for nature is what inspires our vision to become a sustainability leader in the Consumer Packaged Goods industry because we want everyone to be able to keep enjoying paradise.”

This sustainable paper packaging solution for six-packs is made out of the discarded part of barley, its straw, turned into paper fiber. Its production uses 90% less water than the traditional process, but also less energy, and fewer chemicals and resources. As part of the pilot project, an initial 10,000 six-packs is first launched in Colombia, followed by Argentina later in 2021.