Amcor third Lift-Off winner to deliver new Packaging as a Service for reusable food packaging

Amcor, one of the global leaders in developing and producing responsible packaging solutions, has announced a 250,000 dollar investment into smart reusable food packaging start-up circolution, the third winner of Amcor's Lift-Off initiative. Launched in April 2022, Amcor Lift-Off targets breakthrough, state-of-the-art technologies that will further advance Amcor's goal to make the future of packaging more sustainable.

Founded in Frankfurt, Germany, in 2019, circolution's smart reusable packaging solution builds on Germany's existing bottle-deposit system, offering fast-moving consumer goods brands a simple pay-per-cycle service that delivers a significant reduction in carbon footprint per manufacturing cycle versus standard single-use packaging. circolution has developed an innovative model which provides a complete circular service: smart reusable packaging, reverse logistics, data analytics, and impact measurement. Available in a range of shapes, sizes, and materials, the 'packaging as a service' solution requires no upfront investment and has been designed to be fully compatible with existing supply chains and scaled operations standards.

Frank Lehmann, vice president, Corporate Venturing and Open Innovation at Amcor, said, "We are delighted to be in a position to support circolution at this early stage and see great synergies with both our existing products and other investments as we work toward a circular system for packaging.

"Amcor is passionate about supporting the development of a circular economy, and innovation is essential to achieving our goals. Collaboration and investment drive progress, and it is this ethos that led to the formation of the Amcor Lift-Off initiative. Our team continues to discover the most impressive innovative start-ups across the industry, and we look forward to seeing what fruits this latest partnership will bear," Lehmann adds.

Amcor is already working to provide the lid-sealing solution for circolution's first product in the coffee, cacao, and powder sector, launched in 2022, using Amcor's recyclable AmFoil AluFix peelable can lidding. This investment highlights Amcor's efforts to make all products either recyclable, reusable, or compostable by 2025.

Alessandro Marchiaro, co-founder, Financing and Big Data at circolution, said: "We are very happy to win Amcor as the first ticket in our funding round. After having successfully launched in 2022 and begun to scale up our operations, Amcor's expertise and funding will be invaluable. We're excited to take this important step."

circolution is the third company to secure funding through Amcor's Lift-Off initiative, which offers packaging start-ups up to 250,000 dollars in investment to help scale their innovations. Earlier this year, Amcor announced seed funding for Nfinite Nanotechnology and Bloom Biorenewables, and further investments are expected to be announced in the coming months.

Amcor continues to be a leader in identifying and evolving strategic start-up investment opportunities, exploring the potential for joint operations and collaborative development. The Corporate Venturing team fosters start-ups and innovative companies' journeys by sharing Amcor's world-leading research and development expertise. Recent activity includes strategic investments into enabling the global deployment of PulPac, ePac Flexible Packaging, and PragmatIC Semiconductors.