Originally published: Inside FMCG June 15, 2026
Packaging is doing more work than ever. It has to protect a product through the supply chain, perform on the press, meet sustainability targets, and make an impression the moment a consumer picks it up.
For brand owners, that’s a long list of demands to place on a single material. For converters and brand owners, it means the paperboard they specify has to be right every time.
The Formakote range, manufactured by WML Paperboard, is built around exactly that reality. As the only paperboard produced in Australasia, it occupies a unique position: A globally recognised premium product with the supply reliability of a local manufacturer. For Australian and New Zealand brand owners, that combination is increasingly hard to overlook.
Supply reliability is a competitive advantage
The past few years have exposed just how fragile global supply chains can be. Import lead times have stretched, freight costs have spiked, and the downstream effect on production planning has been significant. For brands that rely on imported paperboard, those pressures translate directly into risk, delayed launches, reformulated forecasts, and conversations nobody wants to have.
Sourcing from a domestic manufacturer changes that equation. WML Paperboard supplies Formakote from within the region, which means shorter lead times, more responsive replenishment, and a level of supply continuity that offshore procurement simply cannot match. For converters running tight production schedules and brand owners managing seasonal peaks or new product launches, that reliability is worth quantifying.
Sustainability credentials that hold up to scrutiny
ESG expectations in the FMCG sector are tightening. Retailers are asking harder questions, consumers are paying closer attention, and brands are finding that vague environmental commitments no longer satisfy either group.
Formakote meets this moment with credentials that are independently verified rather than self-declared. It is manufactured from 100 per cent virgin fibre sourced from responsibly managed forests, is renewable, and is fully recyclable through existing household and commercial streams. It carries both FSC certification and ISO accreditation, providing the documented proof points that brands need when reporting against ESG frameworks or responding to retailer sustainability requirements.
Critically, none of that comes at the expense of performance. Formakote maintains its structural integrity, printability, and shelf presentation across the cold chain and into the retail fixture. For brands navigating the trade-off between environmental responsibility and product quality, it removes the trade-off entirely.
Where performance meets presentation
Packaging is not a back-of-house decision. It is one of the most visible expressions of a brand’s identity, quality positioning, and values. Formakote is engineered across a range of grades to serve that purpose across multiple sectors, from beverage cartons and frozen food packaging to confectionery boxes and premium retail applications.
Converters specify it because it runs reliably, holds tight tolerances, and reduces the risk of variation. Brand owners choose it because the finished result reflects the quality of what is inside.
What Formakote ultimately delivers is confidence. Built on proven performance, and a product that has never stopped earning it.
Because packaging that builds brand equity is not an accident. It is the result of deliberate material choices made with the end consumer in mind.
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