Estrella Damm has become the first Spanish beer brand to eliminate plastic rings and printed plastic shrink wrap from its beer packs. The brand’s packs of beer cans are now packaged using 100% biodegradable cardboard from sustainably managed forests.

LatCub® Project 

As part of its firm commitment to sustainable development, in 2019 Damm started the LatCub® pilot project aimed at eliminating plastic rings on its packs of Estrella Damm cans. The result of this project, pioneering within the brewing industry, was a new way of holding cans together using 100% biodegradable cardboard. This cardboard is made with completely natural fibres from sustainably and responsibly managed PEFC-certified trees. The implementation of this system has led to a reduction in the use of more than 260 tonnes of plastic per year, the equivalent of almost 89 million plastic rings. 

Damm started to produce all packs of Estrella Damm cans in this way on the 1st of December 2020, following an investment of more than 6 million euros. To achieve this, Damm has worked in partnership with Alzamora, the company that supplies the cardboard and the creator of the LatCub® concept and holder of the patent. 

See the video of the pilot project here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zBfOMRjMcQE 

Plastic-free decoration 

Continuing with the aim of more sustainable packaging, Damm then eliminated printed plastic shrink wrap from six, twelve and twenty-four packs of Estrella Damm cans. The new packaging, made from PEFC-certified natural fibres, features rounded corners and different opening options, making it ergonomic and easy to use. This project, which started at the beginning of 2021, will result in the reduction of up to 99 tonnes of plastic per year. 

See the video of the new packaging here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UQUecsV7oQw 

Reducing the impact on the environment 

Eliminating plastic can rings and printed plastic shrink wrap are two of the many sustainability practices that Damm has introduced in recent years to reduce its impact on the environment. According to a WWF study, plastic accounts for 95% of the waste floating in the Mediterranean. This is a major problem, made worse by the fact that the Mediterranean is a semi-enclosed sea – it contains 1% of the world’s water and 7% of the world’s microplastics. 

These two projects have managed to eliminate the use of 359 tonnes of plastic that could have ended up in the sea. 

Olga Vidal
(Communication)
+34 600 931 030
Antigua Fábrica Estrella Damm
Carrer del Rosselló, 515
08025 Barcelona