Germany’s Vytal secures €6.2M+ to advance reusable packaging solutions

Germany-based Vytal, a provider of software-enabled reusable packaging solutions, announced that it has secured more than €6.2M in a growth round of funding.

The startup aims to advance the circular economy through technology and data-driven approaches that enhance the value of reusable products.

The investment round, led by Emerald through its Sustainable Packaging Innovation Fund, includes contributions from Ventis and existing investors Grazia Equity, Kiko Ventures, Rubio Impact Ventures, and Chi Impact Capital.

Recently, the startup celebrated with its team at fan zones in Cologne, Stuttgart, and Berlin during the European Championship. At these events, 60 stands served food using Vytal’s reusable cutlery.

Up to 70,000 football fans gathered at Berlin’s Brandenburg Gate fan zone, a 24,000 square meter artificial turf field, for the tournament’s first round of 16 matches.

Replacing single-use packaging

Vytal mentions in a statement that, every year, the EU throws away 66 billion single-use food and drink containers, driven by regulations like the Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation (PPWR) promoting a Circular Economy. Vytal aims to eradicate single-use packaging with its reusable solutions.

Using software and data analytics, the startup offers efficient, cost-effective, and sustainable packaging choices that benefit both businesses and the environment. 

It collaborates with over 7,000 partners across 17 countries to minimise single-use packaging and advocate for sustainable alternatives.

At this year’s OMR Festival in Hamburg, a large-scale pilot by Vytal’s subsidiary, Vytal Events & Entertainment Solutions GmbH, served 70,000 participants using smart reusable containers for all their food and drinks.

Vytal claims that its traceable cups and food containers streamlined operations, making checkout faster and enabling unmanned return processes. This efficiency reduced staffing needs for organisers and wait times for consumers.

Professional washing centres also benefited from Vytal’s RFID-equipped containers, which automate tasks like container counting that were previously done manually.

Corporate campuses, universities, business districts, airports, city centres, shopping malls, trade fairs, festivals, and entertainment venues can adopt Vytal-powered reusable solutions. This shift conserves resources, cuts costs, and supports sustainability efforts.

Furthermore, Vytal operates an open system in 17 countries, enabling consumers to borrow and return high-quality reusable containers free of charge at thousands of partner locations.

Dr. Josephine Kreische, MD of VYTAL Events & Entertainment Solutions and VYTAL Global responsible for the Tech, Product and Marketing teams, says, “Unmanned checkout and return handling as well as transparent data collection and automated processes along the circular value chain are key to completely eliminating single-use packaging from the life of our B2B customers and end consumers.”

“We foresee a future, in which reuse is the default food and drink packaging on campuses, inside the Quick Service Restaurant industry and across the event & entertainment industry.”

Capital utilisation

The funds will enable Vytal to speed up its efforts to transform the packaging industry. The startup plans to use the investment to expand into new markets and enhance its software and data-driven solutions for stakeholders across the reusable packaging circular value chain.

Dr. Tim Breker, co-founder & MD of Vytal, says, “We’re thrilled to take on board Emerald, a very experienced investor with a phenomenal network of corporate partners. Transforming the packaging industry towards circularity is a massive business opportunity and Vytal’s technology platform is positioned to win.”

“We have established ourselves as thought leaders in the field and are looking forward to accelerating our collaboration with various industry partners.”

“We understand the conditions under which reuse outperforms single-use and focus on leveraging software and data to maximise the economic benefits of reusables for all our customers and across use cases.”

Brief about VYTAL Events & Entertainment Solutions

Vytal recently launched VyEES (VYTAL Events & Entertainment Solutions GmbH), a subsidiary focusing on expanding reusable packaging solutions into the events and entertainment industry.

This move underscores Vytal’s commitment to sustainability, offering solutions tailored for large-scale events. VyEES has already attracted notable customers such as the Berlinale, OMR Festival, and Cruilla Music Festival in Barcelona.