The Alfred Ritter GmbH & Co. KG now presents a chocolate bar packed 100 percent in paper for the first time. According to the company, a newly developed “special paper” replaces the previously used, already recyclable mono-material plastic film.
The campaign is initially limited to 1,500 bars, for which consumers could apply as testers. Additional bars were sold in two flagship stores. A QR code on the packaging leads to a short questionnaire with which consumers can give their feedback on the packaging.
In this way, Ritter Sport tests the suitability of its packaging innovation for everyday use – and takes a close look at the difficulties already suspected in using paper packaging for greasy products in everyday consumer life.
The question of whether paper packaging is ultimately better than the plastic film previously used is answered by Ritter Sport in its blog with neither a clear YES nor a clear NO.
This “yes and no” is the answer to a conflict between the demand for sustainability by substituting plastic on the one hand and the urgent need for food protection and durability on the other.
The conflict also describes the major hurdles facing the paper industry. How can the sustainability of the material be merged with the indispensable product protection?
The company does not yet want to say exactly how the Ritter Sport – “special paper” works. However, it is assumed that it is primarily an applied coating that makes the paper a “special paper”.
But even if technical questions remain open: The test from Ritter Sport is exciting. Not at least to find out how the consumer judges the result in practice.
