Brazil launches the country’s first monomaterial coffee packaging designed for recycling

By Arlene Carvalho, from the Circular Movement 

Brazil, the world’s largest coffee producer and one of its top consumers, takes a significant step in innovation with the launch of a coffee made to be circular, through the O1NE packaging — the country’s first monomaterial coffee packaging designed for recycling. The initiative is the result of a partnership facilitated by Circular Movement, which connected Dow and Valgroup — the companies behind the technology — with Catarina Café e Amor, a premium roastery that is pioneering the adoption of this solution in its product line.

The packaging is made of 90% to 95% high-density polyethylene (HDPE), which facilitates recycling by eliminating the mixed materials commonly found in traditional coffee packaging — such as aluminum and paper. Its simple design preserves coffee quality and fits into Brazil’s recycling system, being compatible with the production of new items like softener and liquid soap bottles, rice, beans and sugar packaging, and ice bags.

“The O1NE packaging is the first model designed from the ground up to enable circularity — where material science offers a concrete response to the demand for sustainable packaging,” says Vinicius Saraceni, Executive Director of Circular Movement.

Through Pack Studios — Dow’s global packaging innovation center — the company contributed technical design expertise and technological advantages to accelerate the development of the solution in partnership with Valgroup. Using high-performance resins like ELITE™ AT and INNATE™, the new format combines effective moisture and oxygen barrier, high mechanical strength, and visual appeal, without compromising performance while enhancing recyclability.

Saraceni emphasizes Circular Movement’s effective role in bringing the technology to market.

“We helped connect the expertise of Dow and Valgroup with the vision and commitment of Catarina Café e Amor to bring this solution to life. This process shows the impact that information and education can have on raising awareness among business leaders about the circular economy. Catarina Café e Amor, for example, has been engaged with this agenda for quite some time and is investing to become a reference in the circular economy in the specialty coffee sector.”

Letícia Vanzetto, Market Development Manager for Packaging at Dow — an early partner of Circular Movement — believes this innovation can accelerate the transition to a circular economy.

“We want to inspire other industries to follow the same path. This technology is scalable and adaptable to different sectors like food, cosmetics, and cleaning products. It’s an innovation platform with the potential to redefine sustainability standards in the packaging industry — especially in coffee, where it represents an unprecedented innovation in Brazil,” she explains.

Valgroup adds that the packaging provides an accessible and resilient solution for small roasteries still using non-sustainable packaging, allowing them to adopt a 100% recyclable product without compromising on quality or design. The project also includes educational materials to raise awareness about responsible packaging.

“This packaging also uses digital printing, which enables smaller order volumes, avoids waste from expired packaging, and does not affect the recyclability of the material. Plus, it allows for personalization, traceability, and better product presentation by eliminating the need for extra labels or stickers,” explains João Henrique Alves, Innovation Manager at Valgroup.

He adds that although digital printing has a slightly higher unit cost, it pays off by enabling more efficient purchases with no excess stock.

“The cost difference can reach up to 5%, depending on volume and graphic complexity, so it needs to be evaluated on a case-by-case basis,” Alves notes.

Pioneering roastery

The launch of O1NE comes in a highly relevant market: in 2024, Brazil’s coffee sector generated R$36.8 billion and consumed 21.9 million bags of industrialized coffee, according to the Sustainability Department of the Brazilian Coffee Industry Association (Abic). Brazil is not only the largest producer but also the biggest consumer of its own coffee. About 80% of the total production is turned into roasted and ground coffee — more than 1 billion kilos per year.

In retail, according to Abic, 40% of coffee packaging sold is 500g and 60% is 250g, resulting in an estimated 3.3 billion packages being placed on the Brazilian market annually — the very same ones found in supermarkets and coffee shops. That’s more than one package per month per person, most of which end up in landfills or one of the more than 3,000 open dumps that Brazil still maintains. These numbers highlight the urgency and potential for circular solutions in the coffee sector.

It’s in this context that Catarina Café e Amor, a specialty coffee roastery based in São Paulo, becomes the first to adopt the O1NE monomaterial packaging, recognizing the importance of rethinking the environmental impact of the industry.

“We’re a roastery that takes care of every stage of the process — from the bean to the customer’s cup — because we know that everything we do, in some way, goes back to nature and impacts the planet’s health,” explains Marina Souza Gomes, one of the company’s partners. She notes that this “health” affects the entire supply chain, starting with the coffee grower: “It affects the harvest, shifts pricing, influences quality... in the end, everything is connected, in a constant cycle.”

How to ensure circularity for your coffee — from the packaging to the grounds?

You’ll find everything on our landing page: reuse and proper disposal tips, info about the Catarina Café e Amor refill program — which offers discounts when you bring in your clean container — and the in-store drop-off point to guarantee proper recycling.

Take the opportunity to explore other simple and creative ways to keep your coffee flowing with flavor, responsibility, and purpose.

The launch of the O1NE packaging not only marks a new era for Brazil’s coffee industry but also points to a viable and necessary path for the entire food and beverage sector in the country. By combining technological innovation, environmental responsibility, and collaboration across the production chain, the initiative shows that product performance can go hand-in-hand with circularity and a commitment to the planet’s future.

More than a one-off solution, it’s a concrete invitation for companies of all sizes to rethink their processes and adopt practices that support resource regeneration, driving systemic transformation toward a truly circular economy. The project reaffirms Circular Movement’s role as a connector of systemic solutions — linking different sectors to foster innovations that inspire a regenerative future — and this is just the beginning.

According to Vinícius Saraceni, the goal now is to raise awareness among consumers and other roasteries so this first pioneering case in Brazil can inspire the entire coffee supply chain — and others as well. 

“For those still using complex, hard-to-recycle packaging, the invitation is open: discover and adopt circular solutions that can make your entire operation more sustainable.”

Live Launch

Want to learn more about the O1NE packaging and coffee circularity? Watch the full launch event online!

*This text was automatically translated using artificial intelligence and subsequently reviewed. However, minor differences may still exist when compared to the original version in Portuguese.