Welcome to Pulp Nonfiction: The Paper and Packaging Podcast!

Meet our guest Claire Sand, the CEO of Packaging Technology and Research.  In this episode, Claire presents some encouraging solutions to two of our world’s most pressing problems: PFAS, the so-called “forever chemicals,” and food waste.

This enlightening episode offers some fresh perspectives on how some new packaging coatings are being designed to help minimize PFAS in the food and beverage space, why significant food waste reduction is indeed possible thanks to newly developed packaging technologies as well as some simple consumer behavioral changes, how cellulose is experiencing a resurgence in both food and packaging circles, and much more!

Claire Sand is a Global Packaging Leader with over 35 years of food science and packaging experience. Her mission is to enable a more sustainable food system by advancing science and value chain innovations that increase food shelf life and decrease food waste. She manages cross-functional teams, implements innovative solutions, creates compelling business and technology strategies and business cases, and creates implementation roadmaps for the packaging and food industries.

Dr. Sand is the owner and founder of Packaging Technology and Research, LLC, as well as Gazelle Mobile Packaging Inc. She is also an Adjunct Professor at Michigan State University and CalPoly, and a monthly contributor to Packaging Digest. She is an IFT Fellow, the Riester-Davis-Brody Lifetime Achievement in Food Packaging Award recipient, a member of numerous Editorial Boards, the author of the Packaging Value Chain, and the cochair of pacfoodwaste.

Dr. Sand received her doctorate in Food Science and Nutrition from the University of Minnesota, as well as a master's and bachelor's degrees in packaging from Michigan State University.

This podcast is brought to you by Sustana Fiber, a leading producer of FSC®-certified sustainable recycled fibers. At our facilities in De Pere, Wisconsin in the United States and Lévis, Quebec in Canada, we use automated proprietary processes to transform recovered paper into high-quality recycled fiber for use in printing papers, tissue grades and formed molded fiber packaging. We also produce EnviroLife®, a sustainable recycled fiber compliant with FDA standards for food service packaging. Learn more about how our products and manufacturing practices support the circular economy at www.sustanafiber.com.

Hosted by Sustana Fiber’s Greg Johnson, Director of New Business Development, and Dr. Marta Pazos, a leading sustainable packaging materials scientist, this monthly video podcast series features fascinating discussions on several trending topics involving sustainability.

Welcome to Pulp Nonfiction: The Paper and Packaging Podcast!

Meet our guest Alicia Wallace, the Co-Founder and CEO of All Across Africa. Alicia has crafted a compassionate business model that, thanks in part to offering aspiring artists in Africa and their families hope for a brighter future, is making a major impact in today’s retail world.

This inspiring episode explores some of the popular consumer trends boosting growth in the handmade merchandise market, why using sustainable natural fibers like banana leaves and sweetgrass to make the company’s beautiful baskets, handbags, dining décor, and wall coverings is encouraging more farmers to embrace regenerative agricultural practices, how All Across Africa has managed to develop promising partnerships with premier brands including Disney, Nordstrom, Starbucks, and Target, andmuch more!

All Across Africa was founded In 2013 by Alicia and her business partner, Greg Stone. They work to connect artisan communities and materials in Rwanda, Uganda, Ghana and Tanzania with business and infrastructure in the United States to provide wholesale and retail products.

KAZI, their San Diego-based company that falls under their All Across Africa parent company, employs almost 6,000 artisans in Africa and sells their handcrafted and sustainable cultural items through their website, Amazon storefront, and local boutiques. KAZI holds a Nest Seal of Ethical Handcraft designation — outlining standards for fair wages, benefits, sourcing of materials, a commitment to care for the surrounding environment, health and safety, anti-child labor policies, and workers’ rights — a symbol that identifies items being sold as ethically made in a home or small workshop.

This podcast is brought to you by Sustana Fiber, a leading producer of FSC®-certified sustainable recycled fibers. At our facilities in De Pere, Wisconsin in the United States and Lévis, Quebec in Canada, we use automated proprietary processes to transform recovered paper into high-quality recycled fiber for use in printing papers, tissue grades and formed molded fiber packaging. We also produce EnviroLife®, a sustainable recycled fiber compliant with FDA standards for food service packaging. Learn more about how our products and manufacturing practices support the circular economy at www.sustanafiber.com.

Hosted by Sustana Fiber’s Greg Johnson, Director of New Business Development, and Dr. Marta Pazos, a leading sustainable packaging materials scientist, this monthly video podcast series features fascinating discussions on several trending topics involving sustainability.

Welcome to Pulp Nonfiction: The Paper and Packaging Podcast!

Our guest is Dr. Jay Singh, a Packaging Professor at Cal Poly State University in San Luis Obispo, CA, and the Co-Founder and Co-Director of the Daksha Packaging Group. Jay unpacks some of the marketplace’s most pressing packaging problems like over-packaging along with some ideas on possible solutions.

This episode offers an amazing package deal on why replacing single-use plastic packaging with paper-based alternatives can substantially reduce waste, what package engineers are doing to create a sensible balance between package functionality and sustainability by minimizing a package’s material makeup, how a unique new packaging expert witness program is helping clients maximize their chances for courtroom success, and much more!

Jay received his MS and PhD in Packaging Science from Michigan State University. Considered amongst the top experts in the field of distribution packaging globally, Jay has published over 95 peer-reviewed articles, 73 articles in conference proceedings, 32 trade journal articles, 3 book chapters, coauthored 2 books and edited 1 book. Several of his publications have resulted in development/modification of numerous globally acknowledged packaging test standards. Several of his research efforts have led to innovative packaging designs that have been implemented in the field. His expertise includes teaching, training, testing services and contract research in package design, distribution environment measurement and simulation, material and package testing, product-package compatibility and LCA.

This podcast is brought to you by Sustana Fiber, a leading producer of FSC®-certified sustainable recycled fibers. At our facilities in De Pere, Wisconsin in the United States and Lévis, Quebec in Canada, we use automated proprietary processes to transform recovered paper into high-quality recycled fiber for use in printing papers, tissue grades and formed molded fiber packaging. We also produce EnviroLife®, a sustainable recycled fiber compliant with FDA standards for food service packaging. Learn more about how our products and manufacturing practices support the circular economy at www.sustanafiber.com.

Hosted by Sustana Fiber’s Greg Johnson, Director of New Business Development, and Dr. Marta Pazos, a leading sustainable packaging materials scientist, this monthly video podcast series features fascinating discussions on several trending topics involving sustainability.