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The walls of Venetian paper mill Favini, in northern Italy, are steeped in history, but its production has long been focused on the future. This family-owned company, which is celebrating its 120th anniversary this year, was among the first in the world to industrialise the production of eco-friendly paper using alternative fibres and waste materials. This helps reduce pressure on forests and gives a second life to things that would otherwise have been thrown away – like agricultural and textile by-products.
And the search for new materials never stops.
“Right now, we are working on two types of residues: tomato skins and corn. Over the years, we have experimented with more than 500 different types of biomass, but only about 5%, ultimately, could be scaled up for industrial production,” says Giacomo Berton, Head of Research & Development at Favini.
Recovered materials account for between 10 and 40% of the final product. These by-products will end up in luxury papers, tote bags and high-end packaging. Marketing Manager Michele Posocco explains what the company can make with 14 different types of waste:
“Using these 14 materials, we have created a range called Crush, which we sell worldwide. It is a clear example of how discarded materials from one industrial supply chain can be creatively upcycled and turned into new raw materials.”
It all began in the late 1980s and early 1990s. The need to restore the Venice lagoon and tackle the spread of algae turned a problem into an opportunity: using the algae to make paper. That’s how Alga Carta became the company’s first eco-friendly paper, patented in 1992.
“We made this choice thanks to the vision of my grandfather,” explains Export Sales & Marketing Director Andrea Favini. “He positioned this small company in a niche market. At the time, environmental concerns in the paper industry appealed to only a very limited number of customers. We had to convince clients to embrace this project because it carried real value for ecology and the environment.”
Today, eco-friendly papers still represent a niche market in Europe, but they are the company’s fastest-growing segment, accounting for 10% of its annual turnover, helped by prices that are comparable to those of other traditional high-quality papers. The challenge is to ensure a steady supply chain. Around a dozen Italian and international companies supply their by-products to the paper mill. Among them, the Veneto-based coffee roaster Dersut.
The company’s CEO, Lara Caballini di Sassoferrato, showed us the so-called“silverskin”, the skin that covers the coffee bean and separates during the roasting process. It’s also the raw material Dersut supplied to the paper mill to make 60,000 premium shopping bags for its brand.
“We have always collected it,” says Caballini di Sassoferrato, “As it can be used as a soil fertiliser, for example, in organic farming. But in 2022, we began a collaboration with the University of Padua, which found that it could also be used in paper production.”
The project earned Dersut the Sustainable Company 2025 award and has already prompted the partners involved to consider the next steps of their collaboration.
Eco-papers are luxury papers designed to ensure high performance in printing and paper converting. To explore their applications, I end my journey in a premium packaging manufacturing company that has worked with Favini paper mill for 30 years. Here, sustainability meets aesthetic quality and attention to detail typical of goods Made in Italy.
“Over the last few years, our purchases from Favini have grown by 300%,” says Gabriele Rostellato, Production Manager of DUEGI Packaging. “That growth has been driven by customers who value craftsmanship, supported by an industrial partner capable of delivering at scale. We’ve grown together, and they’ve grown with us.”