With converters striving to meet customer demand for more sustainable materials, UPM Raflatac has developed a comprehensive, credible, and actionable service for packaging design. UPM Raflatac has launched Label Life, a life cycle assessment service that allows customers to make more environmentally responsible decisions.

Label life provides customers with a unique product passport prototype (PPP), or an environmental self-declaration for label products. By utilizing these metrics that are broken down into life cycle stages, brands can inform themselves of the potential impacts along the value chain.

To learn more about Label Life and UPM Raflatac’s sustainable endeavors, L&NW sat down with Flora D’Souza, manager, Label Life, UPM Raflatac.

L&NW: How cognizant are label converters you work with on the sustainability of their materials?
FD: Label converters are increasingly cognizant of the sustainability of their materials, driven by evolving consumer preferences and regulatory pressures. They recognize the importance of minimizing environmental impact throughout the product life cycle, from sourcing raw materials to end-of-life disposal.

As such, many converters are actively seeking sustainable solutions and collaborating with suppliers who share their commitment to sustainability.

L&NW: What is Label Life and how does it help converters evaluate the sustainability of their materials?
FD: Label Life is a comprehensive life cycle assessment (LCA) service offered by UPM Raflatac, designed to help label converters make the switch to a more sustainable label alternative. It provides converters with valuable insights into the environmental impact of their label products through LCA.

By analyzing impacts across raw material sourcing, manufacturing processes, transportation, and end-of-life disposal, Label Life enables converters to make informed decisions that minimize their environmental footprint.

L&NW: What metrics go into this life cycle assessment, and why is tailoring to the unique labelstock product important?
FD: The life cycle assessment conducted through Label Life encompasses a range of metrics, including energy demand, greenhouse gas emissions, water consumption, and many others. Tailoring each assessment to the product specifications is essential because only specific footprints enable converters to make informed choices for the more sustainable product. If we were to provide average footprints, the converters would only be able to estimate their rough Scope 3 emissions. By giving them the specific impacts per labelstock, they can move from understanding what their emissions are to creating a trajectory of actions to reach their sustainability targets.

L&NW: How does this process work in practice?
FD: The process of utilizing Label Life is designed to be straightforward and user-friendly for label converters. UPM Raflatac recommends sustainable alternatives for the converters and provides validated calculations to underpin that the metrics are solid and therefore actionable.

Depending on the application and the converter’s own sustainability goals, UPM Raflatac has various alternatives to offer. For most of our product alternatives, the converter will have access to a comprehensive and specific product footprint, and a comparison to the current / standard solution. The comparisons will be calculated for the intended purchase volume, so the converter can immediately check the impact on their annual emissions and targets.

By leveraging advanced tools and expertise, UPM Raflatac streamlines the LCA process, making it accessible and manageable for converters of all sizes and capabilities.

L&NW: What feedback have you received so far?
FD: Feedback on Label Life has been overwhelmingly positive. Converters appreciate the actionable insights and tangible recommendations provided by Label Life, which enable them to identify solutions to reduce emissions (Scope 3). The effect of more sustainable labelstock trickles down the supply chain and has an increasingly valuable appeal to their own customers, who are ever more pressured to showcase their sustainability credentials.

Moreover, Label Life fosters collaboration and transparency between converters and their supply chain partners, driving continuous improvement and innovation in sustainable label solutions.