The Coffee-to-go business is now arriving on the European continent, being successful in the US and the UK. Traditional café culture is adapting to busy everyday urban life causing an increase in demand for hot drink cups. One of the largest manufacturers in this field, Huhtamaki (brands: Polarcup, Chinet, Bibo), predicts that paper cups will account for one third of the total market by 2004. This is good news for Stora Enso which is currently the leading producer of cup stock in Europe. 

Today around 13 000 million hot drink cups are sold on the European market each year. Of this total, fibre-based paper cups account for some 10 per cent. Though demand for these cups is now rising sharply.

"The demand is increasing, thanks to the introduction of the coffee-to-go concept to the European market. Among other things, brand coffees require that the cup has a good printing surface, and so cups have become an effective medium for advertising. All the significant players want to have their share of the market, as this is a megatrend like the hamburger boom was a couple of decades ago," says Kim Aganimov, Group Vice President of Huhtamaki.

Coffee-to-go originates in the US, from where take-away coffees have come to major cities in the UK. For example, in the global network of 2,500 cafés of the American company, Starbucks Coffee, the UK constitutes its largest market in Europe. The joys of take-away coffee are now becoming a major part of the new café culture on the Continent, too. The Segafredo chain, for example, already has 195 espresso bars in Europe, most of which are located in Germany, France, Austria and southern Europe. Coffee-to-go is also likely to be a success in the Nordic countries, where the consumption of coffee per capita is about five times that of the UK.

A café bar applying the coffee-to-go concept does not have to invest in a normal coffee service or dishwashers, as the coffee is sold in board cups. Disposable cups make take-away retailing possible (higher turnover per square metre) and guarantee fast and hygienic service. Hot drink cups are dimensioned according to the various types of coffee available; for example, espresso and café au lait are served in cups sized especially for them.

The consumption experience and the technical functionality of the cup have also been the objects of long-term R&D work at Huhtamaki and Stora Enso. Among other things, this co-operation has resulted in fibre-based paper lids for cups, recently launched by Huhtamaki. The company uses Stora Enso's PE-coated Ensocup board for its hot drink cups, the strength properties and formability of which are suitable for demanding hot drink cup use.

"What is essential is the elongation value of the board, which is crucial for the formability of the cup. The rigidity properties of the cup are provided mainly by the top rim. The fibres of PE-coated Ensocup have been treated to make them hydrophobic, i.e. they repel hot drinks. This, together with good sealability, guarantees that the cup does not leak. In addition, the printability of cup stock is a factor which is becoming increasingly important in the present era of brand coffees", says Päivi Suutari, Technical Marketing Manager of Stora Enso Packaging Boards.


For further information, please contact:
Stora Enso Oyj Packaging Boards
Ms Päivi Suutari, Technical Marketing Manager
FIN-55800 Imatra
FINLAND
Tel.: +358 2046 22407
Fax: +358 2046 24719
E-mail: paivi.suutari@storaenso.com

Stora Enso UK Ltd.
Mr Roy Bray
12th floor, Newland House
49 Mount Street
GB-Nottingham, NG1 6HE
UNITED KINGDOM
Tel: +44 115 964 7100
Fax: +44 115 964 7170
E-mail: roy.bray@storaenso.com

Stora Enso Interamericas, Inc.
Mr Mikko Jaatinen
8750 Doral Boulevard
Suite 270
Miami, FL 33178
U.S.A
Tel: +1 305 716 9799
Fax: +1 305 716 5441
E-mail: mikko.jaatinen@storaenso.com

Stora Enso North America Corp.
Mr Michael Walsh
Two Landmark Square
3rd Floor
Stamford, CT 06901-2792
U.S.A
Tel: +1 203 356 2300
Fax: +1 203 356 2340
E-mail: mwalsh@storaensona.com

Stora Enso Australia Pty Ltd
Mr Alan Rochford
Level 17, NCR House
8-20 Napier Street
AUS-North Sydney NSW 2060
AUSTRALIA
Tel: +61 2 9955 4855
Fax: +61 2 9955 7933
E-mail: alan.rochford@storaenso.com.au

Stora Enso Austria Ges. m.b.H
Mr Walter Strohmayer
P.O. Box 137
A-1050 Wien
AUSTRIA
Tel: +43 1 546 55
Fax: +43 1 544 8304
E-mail: walter.strohmayer@storaenso.com

Stora Enso Deutschland
Ms Jalliina Järvinen
Große Bleichen 30
D-20354 Hamburg
GERMANY
Tel: +49 40 350 99 150
Fax: +49 40 350 99 101
E-mail: jalliina.jarvinen@storaenso.com

Stora Enso France S.A.
Mr Alain Piattier / Maila Grastilleur
15/25 boulevard de l'Amiral Bruix
F-75782 Paris Cedex 16
FRANCE
Tel: +33 1 5364 79 00
Fax: +33 1 5364 79 90
E-mail: alain.piattier@storaenso.com /
maila.grastilleur@storaenso.com

Stora Enso Italia srl
Mr Renato Somekh
Via A. Volta, 16
I-20093 Cologno Monzese
ITALY
Tel: +39 02 251 514 74
Fax: +39 02 251 514 59
E-mail: renato.somekh@storaenso.com

Stora Enso Nederland B.V.
Mr J.W.F.Klarenbeek
P.O. Box 12386
NL-1101 AJ Amsterdam
THE NETHERLANDS
Tel: +31 20 650 5555
Fax: +31 20 650 5622
E-mail: jan-willem.klarenbeek@storaenso.com

Stora Enso Scandinavia AB
Packaging Boards
Mr Joakim Stockhaus
P.O. Box 70395
SE-10724 Stockholm
SWEDEN
Tel: +46 8 613 6600
Fax: +46 8 613 6770
E-mail: joakim.stockhaus@storaenso.com

Stora Enso Brasil Ltda
Mr Timo Petteri Vuorio
Alameda Vicente Pinzon,
Nr 144, 9th floor, Suite 93
Vila Olimpia-São Paulo/SP
BR-04547-130
BRAZIL
Tel: +55 11 3846 1611
Fax: +55 11 3846 9757

Stora Enso Southern Africa
Mr Vesa Pärssinen
P.O. Box 12900
N1 City
7463 Cape Town
SOUTH AFRICA
Tel: +27 21 595 0942
Fax: +27 21 595 1688
E-mail: vesa.parssinen@storaenso.com

Stora Enso (Middle East)
Mr Martti Harju
R/A 8 - HB1
Jebel ali Free Zone, Dubai
Mail: P.O.B. 61265
Dubai
UNITED ARAB EMIRATES
Tel: +971 4 8836 819
Fax: +971 4 8836 826
E-mail: martti.harju@storaenso.com

Stora Enso (HK) Ltd.
Rm 3605-6 World Trade Centre
Mr Donny Chan
280 Gloucester Road
HONG HONG S.A.R.
Tel : +852 2312 1223
Fax : +852 2576 1480
E-mail: donny.chan@storaenso.com

Stora Enso Singapore Pte Ltd.
Mr Tom Alfthan
360 Orchard Road #11-01 International Building
SG-Singapore 238869
SINGAPORE
Tel: +65 235 3485
Fax: +65 737 4278
E-mail: tom.alfthan@storaenso.com

Stora Enso Singapore Pte. Ltd. Representative Office
Mr John Winther
Block 154-2-11
Kompleks Maluri
Jalan Jejaka, Taman Maluri
55100 Kuala Lumpur
WEST MALAYSIA
Tel: +60 3 9818122
Fax: +60 3 9873122
E-mail: john.winther@storaenso.com

Huhtamaki, Food Service Category
Mr Kim Aganimov, Group Vice President
Länsituulentie 7
FIN-02100 Espoo
FINLAND
Tel.: +358 9 686881
Fax: +358 9 6868 8520
E-mail: kim.aganimov@hvlgroup.com

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