To celebrate Plastic Free July, we’re spotlighting material choices from the 2025 Pentawards shortlist that show how designers are replacing plastic with smarter, more sustainable materials

Plastic Free July is a global movement that encourages individuals and businesses to reduce their reliance on single-use plastics. In the world of packaging design, this shift has inspired brands and creatives to rethink materials and explore more responsible solutions.

To mark the occasion, we’re exploring some of the materials that are helping shape a plastic-free future - from fibre-based classics to emerging bio-based options - featuring standout examples from the 2025 Pentawards shortlist.

Molded Pulp / Paper Pulp

Hennessy X.O 'Spirit of Travel' Collection by Knockout

2025 Pentawards Shortlist - Sustainable Design Beverages

Hennessy X.O's ‘Spirit of Travel’ Collection celebrates global landmarks with eco-conscious packaging that sets a new standard for sustainable luxury.

At the heart of the design of this limited edition range is a deep commitment to environmental stewardship. The packaging is crafted from fully recyclable paper pulp, a sustainable alternative to traditional rigid packaging. The material optimises shipping efficiency, reducing the carbon footprint by enabling more units per shipment, while also enhancing the packaging's visual appeal with sculpted lines that mirror the iconic Hennessy X.O bottle’s distinctive silhouette. This eco-conscious approach marries sustainability with beauty, ensuring the collection remains environmentally responsible without compromising on style.

BOTITO by Tridimage

2025 Pentawards Shortlist - Sustainable Design Home, Leisure & Other Markets

BOTITO is a sustainable toy transforming plastic waste into educational eco-guardians, where packaging becomes beginning, not end.

Inspired by a waste bin, its innovative packaging embodies BOTITO's circular philosophy by utilising 100% post-consumer recycled paper pulp. This transformation of discarded materials creates a fully recyclable and compostable solution. The uncoated paper pulp finish showcases raw materiality, demonstrating that sustainability can be both conscious and playful.

Designed for seamless integration into circular systems, BOTITO packaging can be recycled, composted or creatively reused, leaving only inspiration to rethink waste.

Bio-based materials

Vivomer Dropper by Shellworks

2025 Pentawards Shortlist - Sustainable Design Body, Health & Beauty

Pipette droppers are iconic in cosmetics, but also one of the most problematic. Shellworks reimagined the dropper using Vivomer; their proprietary platform of plastic-free, bio-based materials grown by microorganisms.

Shellworks replicated the performance and sensory cues of glass, plastic, and rubber, without relying on fossil fuels or compromising on function. The result: a dropper that behaves exactly like its conventional counterpart in precision, reusability, and tactility - yet is entirely home compostable once disposed of. The full unit breaks down naturally within 52 weeks, leaving no trace behind.

Kelpey Bone by Plastek UK

2025 Pentawards Shortlist - Supplier Innovation of the Year

The Kelpy Bone offers the performance and longevity of plastic dog toys but is moulded from 100% natural Notpla material, a highly-innovative new material created from natural seaweed.

Traditionally, plastic dog toys are destroyed quickly requiring continual replacement and therefore bearing the carbon footprint of continual remanufacture and transport Nylon toys have much greater longevity, but when discarded or lost can take 50 years or much more to decay, depositing plastic particles into the ground as they go.

By using this revolutionary material Plastek were able to eliminate plastic from our dogs mouths and ensure that we are not contributing to landfill.

Aluminium 

Uppa Club by Lettera7

2025 Pentawards Shortlist - Sustainable Design Brand Identity & Connected Packaging

Every year, millions of avocados end up wasted before they even reach our tables. Uppa Club turns this waste into an opportunity, creating a 100% pure avocado oil that combines sustainability, nutrition and taste. The agency collaborated with the Uppa Club team to create a brand identity that not only breaks convention, but tells a story of conscious food.

To support the brand’s mission, the packaging uses aluminium - one of the most recyclable materials in the world. Infinitely recyclable without loss of quality and highly effective at preserving freshness, aluminium helps extend the shelf life of the product while reducing environmental impact. Its strength, lightness, and durability make it an ideal choice for protecting food products and minimising waste across the supply chain.

Vinca Organic Sicilian Wine by Brandon Consultants

2025 Pentawards Shortlist - Sustainable Design Beverages

The UK’s first 100% Recycled Aluminium wine bottles, slashing 1.06kg of carbon and redefining sustainable drinking.

The packaging was designed to celebrate Sicilian roots, using bold yellows, reds, and greens to evoke Mediterranean vibrancy. The aluminium bottle adds depth and movement, standing out on the shelf. To reduce waste, the design is printed directly onto the bottle, eliminating extra labels and aiding recyclability.

The screw cap allows the bottle to be reused and refilled. The design deliberately avoids the traditional wine aesthetic, making it more likely to be kept and repurposed. An added advantage of aluminium is its thermal efficiency, making the bottle a practical item to reuse at home. Vinca is also launching partnerships with festivals, where bottles will be refilled on-site—helping to reduce single-use waste and promote sustainable habits in live event settings.

As designers continue to push the boundaries of material choice and circular thinking, it’s exciting to see where plastic-free packaging will go next.

Join us at the Pentawards Gala on 4 October in Amsterdam to find out which of these forward-thinking projects will take home a trophy!