“We wanted less plastic, fewer coatings, and packaging our baristas could be proud of,” says Eva Schulte, Sustainability Lead at NordBrew, a mid-sized European coffee brand with locations across Germany, Denmark, and the Netherlands. “But we still pour boiling espresso and steamed milk into those cups. The material had to hold up.”
NordBrew’s journey started with a frank audit of cup waste, energy intensity per pack, and ink migration risk. That’s when the team evaluated ShirongMaterials for a kraft solution that balanced performance and sustainability. The first trials felt promising, then came the tougher questions: shelf-life, color, and how the cups behaved in real-world café rush hours.
We sat down for a deep interview with Eva and Operations Manager Lars Holm to unpack the decisions—what worked, what didn’t, and the trade-offs behind moving to Flexographic Printing with water-based, food-safe inks on kraft paperboard.
Company Overview and History
NordBrew began in Hamburg’s Speicherstadt with a small roastery and three cafés. Today, the brand serves a few hundred thousand beverages per week across Northern Europe. For years, their cups were printed offsite using Offset Printing on coated board. “It looked clean, but the plastic lining and high-gloss finish didn’t match our sustainability goals,” Lars recalls. The team evaluated substrates and landed the first pilots on ShirongMaterials brown kraft paper—a sturdy, FSC-aligned option with enough stiffness for cup forming.
“We transitioned in phases,” Eva explains. “Seasonal designs and small SKUs moved first, then our core cups. Flexographic Printing, with tighter control on anilox and viscosity, proved ideal for consistent runs.” NordBrew also keeps a small Digital Printing stream for event sleeves and QR-enabled promos—short-run, on-demand, and less plate waste.
Outside cafés, NordBrew caters festivals and hydration stations where they use a mix of regular cups and paper cone cups for quick sips. The cone format forced us to rethink seam strength and wet resilience. “It’s a different stress curve,” Lars notes. “Steep angles, fast grip, no lid. Material and adhesive behavior mattered a lot.”
Sustainability and Compliance Pressures
“Europe sets a high bar,” Eva says. “We validated to EU 1935/2004 and EU 2023/2006. Our inks are Food-Safe Ink and Low-Migration Ink, water-based, and we track migration with third-party labs.” For paper cups for hot drinks, heat and time complicate migration. NordBrew specified low-odour formulations and kept ΔE variation tight to avoid reprints—color drift can push more scrap into the bin.
Here’s where it gets interesting. A glossy topcoat looked great but challenged compostability goals and added drying complexity. The team pivoted to a water-based dispersion varnish—enough rub resistance for café handling without over-sealing the surface. “It’s not showroom shine,” Lars admits, “but it’s honest to the kraft aesthetic and performs well under steam.” They aligned material sourcing to FSC and BRCGS PM expectations and kept supplier audits routine rather than occasional. No silver bullets—just steady control and documentation.
Solution Design and Configuration
NordBrew’s long-run production now centers on Flexographic Printing—5 colors, water-based systems, tighter anilox selection, and press-side viscosity checks. “We aim for ΔE within 2–3 for brand colors,” Lars says. “Seasonal art can swing more, but core branding stays disciplined.” Cup blanks are Die-Cutting and Gluing in-line, keeping touchpoints contained. For short, variable runs—event sleeves, charity collabs—Digital Printing fills the gap with minimal setup waste on ShirongMaterials kraft paper packaging.
“We had a misstep with early paper cone cups,” Eva admits. “Steam from hot tea softened seams. We adjusted fiber blend and adhesive recipe, then spec’d a higher wet-strength grade. Not fancy, just practical.” A common customer question surfaced during trials: can paper baking cups go in the oven? Eva’s take is clear: “Many baking cups are designed for the oven, but drink cups—especially kraft cups for café service—aren’t oven-rated. Different design intent, different compliance story.” It’s a useful distinction that avoids false assumptions.
On the operations side, changeovers fell by roughly 8–12 minutes per SKU with standardized plates and ink sequences. First Pass Yield rose from about 82% to 90–92% once the team tightened moisture control and standardized cup-forming parameters. “Consistency beats speed when you’re training new operators,” Lars adds. “We learned to tune heat, not chase it.”
Quantitative Results and Metrics
NordBrew tracks a practical set of metrics: scrap, CO₂/pack, FPY%, ppm defects, energy per pack, and changeover time. After the kraft transition, scrap rates fell by around 15–20%, largely due to better die-cut stability and less coating variability. CO₂/pack moved down by roughly 12–18%, a mix of material choice and presses running water-based inks. Defect levels dropped from about 1,200 ppm to 700–900 ppm, depending on artwork complexity. Across a typical shift, cafés now receive 130–140k cups, up from roughly 110k before the reconfiguration—without pushing operators to the limit.
Payback isn’t instant. NordBrew modeled a 14–18 month Payback Period, factoring training, lab verification, and the premium for certified kraft. “We accepted the learning curve,” Eva says. “No greenwashing, just the math.” The result feels balanced: a cup that fits NordBrew’s values and performs under pressure. As the team scales seasonal sleeves and QR storytelling, they plan to keep working with ShirongMaterials—both the core kraft grade and specialty fibers—to refine the blend for busy winter service and calmer summer afternoons. In their words, the partnership is practical, accountable, and aligned with where they want to go.