Award-winning design for the circular economy: Steinbeis Papier wins the German Ecodesign Award 2025

Glückstadt, 2. December 2025 - Steinbeis Papier, a pioneer and European market leader in graphic recycled paper, has been awarded the prestigious German Ecodesign Award 2025 in the ‘Product’ category for its ‘Closed Loop Recycling Labels’ project. The award ceremony took place on 1 December 2025 at the Federal Ministry for the Environment in Berlin. The award, presented by the highest authorities for the environment and design in Germany – the Federal Ministry for the Environment (BMUV), the Federal Environment Agency (UBA) and the International Design Centre Berlin (IDZ) – recognises products and concepts that impress with their outstanding ecological and design quality.

A double innovation closes the loop
Wet and alkali-resistant labels, such as those found on beverage bottles or food jars, have always posed an unsolvable problem for paper recycling. Due to their special properties, they could not be dissolved in conventional processes and usually ended up being thermally recycled.

This is exactly where the award-winning project from Steinbeis Papier comes in, presenting a double innovation:

1. A new, sustainable product: Steinbeis Label Wet is a wet- and alkali-resistant label paper made from 100% recycled paper.

2. A new processing technology: At the same time, an innovative dissolving line has been implemented. For the first time on an industrial scale, this technology makes it possible to recycle used wet-strength labels and other types of paper that are difficult to dissolve (such as to-go cups) into new graphic papers.

Instead of being incinerated, used labels become a valuable raw material for new recycled labels. This creates a genuine closed loop that conserves resources and avoids waste.

Ecological added value and corporate philosophy in practice
The ecological added value of this innovation is enormous. According to calculations by the renowned IFEU Institute (Heidelberg), the use of Steinbeis recycled paper saves impressive amounts of resources compared to paper made from fresh fibres: 100% wood, 79% water and 73% energy.

‘This award is wonderful confirmation of our approach to consistently thinking sustainability and innovation through to their logical conclusion,’ says Marc Gebauer, Managing Director at Steinbeis Papier. ‘The closed-loop recycled label project is more than just a product. It is a commitment to eco-design and embodies our corporate philosophy, which we have been living for decades: to act with foresight, close cycles and minimise negative impacts on the environment before they even arise.’

The award underscores that the circular economy is the right path to take and that sustainable innovations make a decisive contribution to a sustainable industry.

About Steinbeis Papier

Steinbeis Papier GmbH in Glückstadt is the European market leader for graphic recycled paper made from 100% waste paper. Its product range includes printing and copying paper, coated offset paper, digital printing paper and label paper. In 2024, Steinbeis Papier produced a total of 280,309 tonnes of paper and achieved a turnover of 247 million euros. With its early commitment to environmental protection, the company has contributed to a sustainable rethink in the paper industry, but also in consumer markets, and has significantly shaped the development of the recycled paper market in Germany and Europe.