The Michigan State University (MSU) School of Packaging (SoP) has launched the Center for Plastic, Paper and Hybrid Packaging End-of-Life Solutions (C3PS), supported by a five-year grant from the U.S. National Science Foundation (NSF). The new center aims to develop innovative, circular solutions for packaging waste and position U.S. manufacturers at the forefront of global sustainable packaging.
“MSU has the world’s biggest and top-ranked school of packaging, and its unique industry partnerships set our researchers apart,” said Kevin M. Guskiewicz, President of Michigan State University. “The SoP has a reputation for sustained excellence over time, and this center will further solidify its position as the go-to place for solving the packaging industry’s most pressing problems.”
The center’s creation comes amid growing concerns about packaging waste, as “the United States produces approximately 40 million tons of plastic waste annually,” with “nearly 40 percent” originating from packaging. Only around “five percent of plastic waste is recycled,” underlining the urgency for scalable end-of-life solutions.
C3PS is NSF’s first Industry-University Cooperative Research Center (IUCRC) focused exclusively on packaging. It will advance pre-competitive research with three core objectives:
- “Conduct high-impact research in packaging to address the shared needs of companies of various sizes.”
- “Strengthen the United States’ global leadership in the advancement of innovative packaging technology.”
- “Develop a highly skilled workforce in the manufacturing sector.”
“This center is an exciting inflection point, not only for the SoP but also for the discipline of packaging,” said Laura Bix, Ph.D., Interim Director of the MSU School of Packaging. “Although interdisciplinary collaboration and engagement with external stakeholders has long been a strength for the SoP, the recognition and support of NSF will take these relationships and the visibility of their results to a whole new level.”
Led by Muhammad Rabnawaz, Ph.D., Associate Professor at MSU’s School of Packaging, the center is structured as a collaboration between MSU and Western Michigan University, along with faculty from six other U.S. institutions. Its research will focus on both plastic and paper-paper hybrid materials:
- Plastic: Efforts will include designing “safe, zero-waste plastic packaging solutions” by developing “recyclable and biodegradable plastics”, alongside improving recycling technologies.
- Paper and hybrids: Research will target “safe, recyclable and biodegradable paper and paper-plastic hybrid materials,” by creating “new recycling methods for emerging hybrid products” and exploring “recyclable paper additives” and “consumer-ready products from recycled paper.”
“C3PS seeks to advance the science and engineering of ‘cradle-to-cradle’ packaging, where plastic, paper and hybrid packaging materials are designed to integrate with their eventual disposal systems,” said Rabnawaz. “C3PS researchers envision a circular packaging economy that builds this thinking into the manufacturing process so that packaging materials aren’t discarded—they’re reused, recycled or biodegraded.”
The center brings together 24 cross-disciplinary faculty members from eight U.S. universities, engaging expertise in “packaging, materials science, AI and predictive modeling, biodegradation, manufacturing, recycling, regulatory science and social sciences.” Graduate and undergraduate students will also participate, preparing the next generation of sustainable packaging professionals.
“The SoP is already a hub for industry partnerships, and this center is going to be a destination for researchers and future leaders in the field,” said Matt Daum, Ph.D., Interim Dean of the College of Agriculture and Natural Resources. “It’s a significant milestone that required two years of effort on the part of the center leadership team: assembling a great team, securing industry funding partners and obtaining the NSF grant to initiate the center.”
Looking ahead, Rabnawaz and the leadership team aim to expand the center’s faculty and industry membership, building C3PS into a “national center of excellence for packaging end-of-life solutions.”
