Huhtamaki’s has acquired packaging supplier Everest Flexibles in South Africa. Credit: Huhtamaki.

Global food packaging specialist Huhtamaki has unveiled sustainable paper straws in an effort to enable customers to switch to paper straws when consuming cold drinks.

The company manufactured the paper straws using fibre sourced from sustainably managed forests and noted that the paper used is Programme for the Endorsement of Forest (PEFC) certified.

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Huhtamaki’s straws have been tested and verified for food safety in Europe, China, and the US.

Huhtamaki Foodservice Europe-Asia-Oceania QSR and beverage global category director Neal McCone said: “Our paper straws are crafted to be strong, reliable and functional. We have invested in new, purpose-built machinery to deliver premium product quality.

“We are confident that we can offer paper straws that are durable and superior in performance compared to the current market offering. Our straws are also both odour and taint free.

“In addition to new machines, we have also invested in new manufacturing setups for paper straws.

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“We look forward to the opportunity to offer a sustainable choice, grow the market and be the leading supplier. With our initial output, we are serving McDonald’s in the UK and across Europe as one of their main suppliers.”

“With our initial output, we are serving McDonald’s in the UK and across Europe as one of their main suppliers.”

The company is offering the new paper straws in various size variants, including the standard size with a 7.3mm diameter.

The packaging specialist is planning to expand the production capacity of the new paper straws into other markets across Europe and globally in an effort to serve customers across all geographies.

Customers can also purchase sustainable paper straws from Huhtamaki’s website.

Huhtamaki currently operates 78 manufacturing sites and 24 sales offices across 34 countries.

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