According to OurWorldInData, over 40% of the world’s plastic waste comes from packaging. Packaging also makes up a significant share in the three regions that generate the most plastic waste: the United States, where the packaging accounts for 37% of the total plastic waste, Europe with 38%, and China with 45%.

„We saw a direct need and gap in the market to provide an actually sustainable, low carbon footprint and fully natural packaging material. The importance of 100% compostability comes from the fact that packaging is the number 1 driver of plastic pollution in the world - if we can't manage recycling then we need to design solutions that nature can manage itself.”

This is what Karl Pärtel, business man with a decade of experience in cleantech, an M.Eng in Industrial Ecology, and one of the cofounders of RAIKU tells green.start-up.ro when describing how their business idea started. What is their idea, and how it ties into sustainability and packaging, you ask?

RAIKU makes springs, mats and wraps for packaging, made out of 100% wood, which is the material with the lowest environmental footprint that can be disposed of in biowaste or returned to nature, where it can decompose naturally.

And if you wonder how that is sustainable, the company uses remaining wood from other industries, such as the furniture industry, and is working with European wood providers. The key in their sustainability is how little wood they actually need in order to produce their product: one million cubic meters of RAIKU requires only 50,000 cubic meters of wood.

RAIKU: how a sustainable idea came to life

The original concept was developed by Rain Randsberg, who holds an M.Eng in Mechanical Engineering, has 15 years of engineering experience, after he and Karl Pärtel met at a Cleantech event and decided to collaborate and combine their expertise.

While packaging is a known global issue then it also holds a massive opportunity since in 2019 the Green Deal act was agreed to reduce carbon emissions in all industries, explains Karl.

„Packaging is a rapidly growing 1 trillion euro global industry, but it relies heavily on outdated, polluting technologies like single-use plastics and resource-intensive paper and carton. Europe is targeting a 70% recycling rate by 2030, but this still leaves 30 millions of tonnes of non-recycled waste annually. There needs to be a radical approach: safe biomaterials that are harmless to nature.”

That's the mentality that pushed RAIKU into developing a packaging material with no chemicals or additives, which uses significantly fewer resources than competing solutions. The company uses only one raw material - wood - which is cut into thin strips and transformed into small springs that can be intertwined into mats and wraps.

How to make wood products sustainable

Wood is a strong, elastic material which is useful in many applications and seen as one of the main ingredients for the shift from fossil-based resources to bio-based. However, deforestation is an important concern when using wood, as well as the question of how can we use this material in the best, most sustainable way for the future.

„If we analyse the wood use then there is tremendous misuse as only in Europe hundreds of millions of cubic meters of wood is just burned for energy as an example. We need 50.000m3 of wood to make a 150 million euros revenue and solve the packaging issue - it’s just a fraction of burned wood.”

But, thanks to the spring structure implemented in the RAIKU products, they can create 20 times more volume to the wood - so, 1 truck comes in, 20 trucks go out.

Compared to paper production, RAIKU uses 99.9% less water, 98% less energy, 90% less wood, and zero chemicals to show the difference of the technology, it’s not only about wood. For comparison we have the pulp and paper industry, which makes products such as paper, tissue, and paper-based packaging, which accounts for 13-15% of total wood consumption and uses between 33-40% of all industrial wood traded globally.

„At present, we work with European wood providers and some of our investors are among Estonia’s largest forest owners, which further aligns our interests with sustainable forestry,” explains Karl when asked about concerns regarding deforestation and the procuration of wood for their products.

„We also utilise other industries' leftovers and look into even faster growing woody materials, such as bamboo, willow and reed in the near future. Therefore, wood is a great material if you use it wisely, and we can move other biosources as well.”

Do companies care for sustainable packaging

RAIKU currently serves clients in more than 15 European countries and, while their primary focus remains on Europe, they plan to expand globally.

„While our technology is designed for global use and we ship worldwide, most shipments currently stay within Europe for logistical efficiency. With the completion of our pilot factory, we’ll be able to scale production and improve logistics to better serve other regions.The interest for such alternatives to packaging is coming from the US, UK, Australia, India, UAE and Europe-and our material is already in use on multiple continents.”

The demand spans from a variety of sectors, says Karl. Mostly industries such as luxury goods, ceramics, cosmetics, beverages, and other high-value products, e-commerce brands seeking premium and packaging resellers eager to offer innovative alternatives to traditional materials.

Another factor that Karl thinks makes their products stand out is the protection capability - if you ship your products and they break on the way, then the replacement is actually the highest cost you can pay.

How can companies become more sustainable

And, speaking of costs, we asked Karl about what companies can do to become more sustainable, and what needs to be done for a better future. He tells us how they see things at RAIKU, but also the importance of being mindful of the long-term impact and keeping the whole life cycle of products in mind.

„For us, sustainability is about making conscious choices at every stage of a company’s work - not just chasing the cheapest or fastest option, but thinking about the long-term impact. A simple first step could be switching to sustainable packaging materials, which can significantly cut waste and emissions without hurting quality or brand appeal.”

From there, it’s about going further, says the cofounder: improving energy efficiency, sourcing responsibly, and designing products with their whole life cycle in mind. He wants to remind all businesses and startups that no one can do it alone and that it takes multiple businesses, policymakers, and customers, all pulling in the same direction to make sustainability the norm rather than the exception.

„The companies therefore face a decision: to become more sustainable or risk losing their clientele.”