DS Smith recently joins US Dept. of Energy’s Better Climate Challenge; one way company is addressing challenge is with a multi-million-dollar investment in steam recycling technology at its corrugated packaging facility in Columbia, South Carolina

Redefining packaging for a changing world.

That’s our purpose at DS Smith. It’s why we exist. It captures the value we bring to all our stakeholders and the wider world. In that spirit, DS Smith recently joined the U.S. Department of Energy’s Better Climate Challenge which is challenging organizations to set ambitious, portfolio-wide greenhouse gas (GHG) emission reduction goals.

The goal of the Better Climate Challenge is to reduce Scope 1 & 2 GHG emissions by 50% within 10 years as responsible organizations like DS Smith do their part to lead the way to solve this pressing issue. Joining this initiative was an easy choice for DS Smith. It represents who we are…a company with sustainability at its heart working to tackle some of the worlds most pressing sustainability issues.

To cover all the ways DS Smith is fulfilling is sustainability mission this would be quite a lengthy article. You can take a deeper dive by reviewing our annual sustainability report. For now, let’s look at a specific case of DS Smith in the U.S. answering the Better Climate Challenge’s call to reduce emissions and save energy.

In December 2023, DS Smith invested in a multi-million dollar steam recycling technology at its Columbia, S.C. corrugated packaging facility designed to reduce energy consumption by 20% and decrease carbon emissions by 700 tons annually. The new Baviera Steam Systems technology installed at the specialty coated box manufacturing plant efficiently recovers condensate typically lost in the corrugation process. This not only allows us to save energy and water by recovering and reusing steam it also increases productivity at the plant keeping our machinery operating more consistently. A similar upgrade is planned for our Reading, Pa. facility in 2024.

It’s not just how we make boxes at DS Smith that address climate challenges, it’s what boxes we make that aims to solve problems as well. The Columbia plant makes water-resistant, fully recyclable Greencoat® boxes used to package fresh poultry and produce. Utilizing this technology, in March 2024 DS Smith expanded its offering to seafood providers by launching its DryPack seafood box in North America. These innovations give our customers an alternative to non-recyclable polystyrene (EPS) foam boxes widely used to package these products today. They also utilize less space than other products which helps reduce carbon emissions from the transportation of our customers’ products.

Our operations in Columbia represent just one example of how DS Smith is redefining packaging for a changing world and delivering on the Better Climate Challenges call to action that we have committed to. We look forward to leading the way in sustainability and meeting targets as we strive to achieve our goal of a circular business model.