Tetra Pak supports the development of the first babassu beverage in a long-life carton

Tetra Pak, a world leader in food processing and packaging solutions, has focused its expertise in innovation and sustainability to help develop and scale innovative and unprecedented products in Brazil. This is the case with the babassu plant-based beverage in carton packaging, whose pre-launch took place at COP30 and proved that when a support network is aligned with the same purpose, a creation that seemed purely artisanal can innovate an entire market. 

“Tetra Pak is for everyone, and that applies to companies of all sizes,” summarizes Luis Kühl, Director of New Business at Tetra Pak Brazil. “Providing industrial scale and reach for sustainable projects that align with the growing demand for healthier products is both possible and profitable,” he adds. 

The babassu plant-based beverage is the result of a partnership between Reflyta, Polvo Lab, do bem, and Tetra Pak. It all began to take shape in the hands of the entrepreneur Nelinha do Babaçu, born in the Amazon region of Maranhão, more than five years ago. Tetra Pak joined the project supporting the development of the beverage until its first packaging in a long-life carton, which eliminates the need for preservatives and is fully recyclable. 

The beverage reaches the market after passing through Tetra Pak's Customer Innovation Center (CIC), where formulation tests were conducted to arrive at a product that maintains its nutritional properties and original taste while remaining appealing to consumers. Established in Brazil in 2017 after an investment of approximately R$ 40 million, the center offers the food and beverage industry a co-creation environment dedicated to idea generation, intelligent design, branding, portfolio development, prototyping, sales and consumption strategies. 

“Our CIC was created for this purpose, so that our clients have a place for development, testing, and even market insight,” says Kühl, adding that this support generally happens in five stages: diagnosis, development, improvements, delivery, and evaluation. In addition to supporting the arrival of the ideal formulation, Tetra Pak also worked to connect the beverage manufacturer with a co-packer. In this collaborative partnership model between companies, a manufacturer provides the recipe and the necessary inputs for the production of food or beverages, while all the manufacturing infrastructure is outsourced to a co-packer. This co-packer is a specialized company that possesses the resources and equipment to manufacture and package products from various brands. 

“I started testing possibilities with babassu at Tetra Pak’s CIC and we arrived at this result: a unique beverage that brings the benefits of an Amazonian fruit, harvested from the standing forest,” says Nelinha do Babaçu. 

Typical of the North and Northeast regions of Brazil, especially Maranhão, babassu is recognized for its versatility and nutritional value, containing magnesium and antioxidant phenolic compounds. The new beverage project involves 60 women who break babassu nuts in Maranhão, providing them with extra income to supply the main raw material. 

For packaging, the Tetra Brik® Aseptic Square 1000 packaging was chosen, which, like all Tetra Pak packaging, is recyclable. It also allows for a longer shelf life, a greater variety of products available, ease of transport as it does not require refrigeration, and greater visibility on the shelves.