Consumer and Environmentally Friendly Pizza Box Project Saucy Students: Scott Evers, Kayla Finnessy, Kyle Kozlowski, Nate Nelson Advisor: Robert Meisner University of Wisconsin-Stout Project Overview The project was a collaboration between UW-Stout’s Discovery Center, and Packaging faculty and students to create design concepts for an environmentally and consumer friendly pizza box. The purpose of the research was to design a more sustainable carry-out pizza box that prevents food residue thereby facilitating recycling. This recycling of pizza boxes has the potential to eliminate $700 million annually spent on decontamination costs at recycling facilities. Innovation Creative Application Side vents Resizing capability Consumer friendly design Recyclability Technical Advances Removable paper-PLA laminate lining increases recyclability Side vents allow steam to escape, keeping pizza crisp not soggy Design Advances Consumer friendly design enables downsizing box Storage footprint is reduced by nearly 50% New Material Applications Removable paper-PLA laminate lining protects corrugated box from grease and contamination; increases recyclability The UW-Stout Discovery Center aligns the applied research and technical assistance assets of the university and facilitates common access to a broad range of stakeholders, bolstering these vital intellectual and physical resources. Economics Cost-reduction Factors Cost-reduction on recycling machinery maintenance Less material entering landfills. Life Cycle issues Laminate liner prevents food and grease from soiling corrugated box Liner is compostable Corrugated box remains clean and recyclable Package Performance Removable paper-PLA laminate lining protects corrugated box from grease and contamination; increases recyclability Product Protection Packaging Requirements Provides the same product protecting as current pizza box. Testing Methods ISTA 2A compression test -Redesign out-performs the current box Package Performance Assembly/Filling Easy assembly & closing Side vents allow steam to escape Machinery Runs on existing machines Different die-line Marketing Greener Packaging Paper-PLA liner makes corrugated 100% recyclable Liner is compostable Cost and Convenience Restaurants can use ½ box for smaller foods (wings, breadsticks, etc.) Initial investment of new die-line Paper-PLA laminate liner cost minimal End-user convenience to store ½ box in refrigerator Environmental Impact Greener Packaging 100% recycled board used in redesign Corrugated becomes 100% recyclable Liner is compostable This design won 1st Place in the 2011 National Student AmeriStar Package Awards Competition! The students identified a package they thought needed improvement. They researched packaging options and developed a new package that solved the problems the students identified. This design is now entered in the WorldStar competition. Kayla Finnessy, Nate Nelson, Kyle Kozlowski, Scott Evers We had a great experience completing Project Saucy. It was fun to choose our own package to redesign and we were able to use our creativity along with our different backgrounds to develop the best pizza box! My favorite part was... that we got to design anything we wanted. - Scott Evers Side Vents