Golf Coat has created a golf ball packaging that converts into an insect shelter after use. The Finnish company has created this packaging solution for its best-selling product and boasts to support biodiversity and promote the circular economy.
The insect hotel was designed in an online workshop facilitated by Metsa Board’s Excellence Centre. The design method is part of Metsä Board’s 360 Services.
Aki Kuivaniemi, CEO of Golf Coat Oy said, “Our aim was to create a simple, smart and cost-effective structure that would be easy to assemble and fill with, for example, leaves, saw dust or dry grass after its primary use as a golf ball box. Metsä Board and its partners developed an insightful packaging that provides an artificial nesting structure and shelter for insects and pollinators.”
“Our packaging provides a habitat that is good for nature, and also brings circular economy thinking to the game of golf, it is also good for the image of the sport as a whole. The encouraging responses from the public, inspired by the New Wood vote, are testament to this concept – it was a pleasure to read them and use them to further innovate new packaging,” added Kuivaniemi.
Ilkka Harju, Packaging Services Director EMEA and APAC at Metsa Board said, “To create the insect hotel concept, we needed close cooperation between all the partners. The design process involved Golf Coat, the originator of the idea, packaging design company Futupack, packaging converter Pyroll and our own designers.”
The golf ball packaging, and insect hotel, is made of MetsäBoard Pro FBB Bright paperboard. The package is currently sold in Finland, Sweden, Korea and Japan. Metsä Board is part of Metsä Group.
The company states that the packaging solution has recently received the most public votes in the spring 2022 New Wood project competition.