Vetropack wins Austrian State Prize Smart Packaging 2024: recognition for innovative lightweight glass bottle

11.10.2024: Vetropack was awarded the prestigious Austrian State Prize Smart Packaging in the "Packaging of the Future" category on October 10. The company received the award for its innovative 0.33-litre reusable bottle made of thermally tempered lightweight glass, which is available to the entire Austrian brewing industry as a standard solution.

At the presentation of the Smart Packaging Award at FH Campus Wien: from left to right Sarah Warscher from the Federal Ministry for Climate Protection, Environment, Energy, Mobility, Innovation and Technology; Johann Eggerth, Managing Director of Vetropack Austria and Roland Weinert, Head of Section of the Ministry of Labour and Economy

Vetropack wins the Austrian State Prize Smart Packaging 2024: recognition for innovative lightweight glass bottle

For almost a decade, Vetropack's research and development team worked on a process for producing tempered lightweight glass bottles. The resulting technology enables the company to harden lightweight glass bottles for use as reusable containers – a unique innovation that Vetropack offers as the only supplier worldwide. This lightweight reusable bottle was made available to the entire Austrian brewing industry as a standard solution in 2024, making an important contribution to compliance with the mandatory refillable quota. A current example of the successful adoption of this technology is the new "Gösser Biostoff Lager" beer bottle, which has been on the market in Austria since February 2024.

The Mohrenbrauerei was also nominated in the "B2C: Sales Packaging for Private Consumers" category. As pilot user, the Mohrenbrauerei has been using its own version of Vetropack’s thermally tempered lightweight glass bottles for various products since 2019.

The Austrian State Prize Smart Packaging is awarded every two years by the Federal Minister of Labour and Economy in cooperation with the Federal Minister for Climate Action, Environment, Energy, Mobility, Innovation and Technology. The aim of the award is to recognise packaging solutions that are characterised by sustainability, technological innovation, and optimal design.

The award for Vetropack emphasises the company's innovative spirit and the relevance of sustainable packaging solutions for the future of the food and beverage industry.