BioSupPack, an EU-funded research initiative led by AIMPLAS, has shown how brewery waste can be transformed into high-value packaging materials, offering a practical route to more circular and bio-based packaging systems in Europe. Over a five-year period, the project developed and validated several alternatives to fossil-based plastics, using brewery spent grains as feedstock for new materials designed for flexible, fibre-based and rigid packaging applications.

The work is especially relevant at a time when the European packaging sector is under pressure to align with the Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation (PPWR). With the EU aiming for all packaging placed on the market to be recyclable by 2030, projects that combine renewable feedstocks, industrial scalability and end-of-life solutions are becoming increasingly important. BioSupPack positions itself within that context by linking agricultural side streams, material innovation and circular design in one integrated value chain.

At the heart of the project is a biorefinery process that converts brewery by-products into polyhydroxybutyrate (PHB) through plasma pretreatment and microbial fermentation. This process reached technology readiness level 6, meaning it has already been demonstrated in an industrially relevant environment. In parallel, the consortium developed PHA-based coatings as biodegradable alternatives to conventional polyethylene and PVC layers, targeting uses on paperboard and textiles. These coatings also reached TRL 6, underlining the project’s progress beyond laboratory research.

BioSupPack also advanced compostable fibre-based packaging with barrier properties suited to demanding applications such as ice cream containers. These materials reached TRL 7, as did the project’s PHB formulations for rigid packaging, which were validated at industrial scale for uses including bottles and retail display structures. Importantly, these solutions are compatible with existing manufacturing routes such as extrusion blow moulding and injection moulding, a crucial factor for industrial adoption because it reduces the need for disruptive changes in converting infrastructure.

The consortium, made up of 18 organisations from across the bioplastics value chain, also explored end-of-life and waste management solutions. A sorting prototype was developed to identify and separate these new biobased packaging streams, while the materials were designed to be suitable for enzymatic recycling using selective enzymes. This adds another dimension to the circular model, combining renewable sourcing with dedicated recovery pathways rather than relying only on compostability claims.

BioSupPack demonstrates that agricultural waste streams can become a serious feedstock for next-generation packaging, connecting resource efficiency, industrial feasibility and regulatory readiness.

With a total budget of EUR 7.6 million under the Circular Bio-based Europe Joint Undertaking, the project also contributes to broader European objectives such as the European Green Deal and the EU Bioeconomy Strategy. Its significance goes beyond one material platform: it shows how new value chains can be built around waste that would otherwise remain underused. For packaging manufacturers, brand owners and biopolymer producers, the technologies offer a concrete example of how circular packaging can be scaled from local biomass streams while meeting performance requirements in real market applications.

For the packaging industry, BioSupPack is a strong signal that the transition to circular materials will not depend on one single solution, but on the combination of renewable feedstocks, process innovation, manufacturing compatibility and clear end-of-life options. By turning brewery waste into functional packaging systems, the project reinforces the idea that the future of packaging may increasingly be built from side streams once seen only as waste.