China’s First 136 Major Application Scenario Projects: Opportunities for the Paper Packaging Value Chain

When customers switch packaging materials, they need end-use performance, production stability and total cost to work together. Connecting base paper, materials, coating, forming and end use is what gives a sample the chance to enter long-term procurement.

On October 20, 2026, China’s National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) announced that it and other government departments had launched the first batch of 136 landmark major application scenario projects. Spanning five categories, the projects involve more than 1,700 new technologies, 1,200 new products and 2,200 new standards and specifications.

For paper packaging businesses, the key signal is that opening real-world application settings and conducting joint validation can create opportunities to put new technologies and products into practical use.

The starting point can be specific: begin with a familiar paper grade, process or customer need, and identify an application worth developing together.

How can open application scenarios create business for paper packaging?

At its press conference, the NDRC emphasized that application scenarios should test technical reliability, compatibility with facilities, economic feasibility and institutional adaptability. It also supports large enterprises working with upstream and downstream small and medium-sized businesses on projects.

This matches a practical challenge in paper packaging development: material suppliers provide emulsions, mills supply base paper, and coaters and converters bring processing capabilities. Customers, however, need the complete product that results when these capabilities work together.

National policy provides a direct connection. The General Office of the State Council’s implementation guidelines on developing application scenarios include substitution with bio-based materials under biotechnology and call for opening scenarios across entire industrial value chains.

There is also primary-source material closer to this industry. The exemplary cases of innovation and development in non-food bio-based materials published in 2026 by the General Offices of the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology and the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs include Beijing PhaBuilder’s production of polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHA) from non-food biomass and their applications. The case describes uses including paper–plastic composites and single-use food packaging.

This is a separate collection of exemplary cases, not part of the first 136-scenario list. It nevertheless provides a concrete industry reference: upstream PHA manufacturing already has clear technical and application links to paper packaging.

The next areas to develop in depth are how materials match different papers, work in coating and forming processes, and meet customers’ end-use requirements. These can become specific joint development tasks across the paper packaging value chain.

Start with a customer problem, and leave the project with product capabilities that support continued delivery.

Turn opportunities into specific development tasks

The following joint development opportunities draw on policy mechanisms and existing industrial applications. Participation in a particular project still depends on its published requirements and conditions.

A hot-drink paper cup must perform well in use and in manufacturing.

First, the customer should define the cup format, beverage temperature, holding time and cost limits. Then assess bottom and side-seam leakage, edge wicking, heat sealing and blocking in the wound roll.

Initial trials can compare the current and candidate solutions on the same base paper, followed by optimization of coating, drying and cup-forming conditions for each structure. Broader validation should also examine performance after continuous production, storage and transport.

For mills, coaters and cup makers, the joint task must establish whether end-use performance can be maintained, forming remains stable and costs are viable. If acceptable performance continually requires higher coat weights or lower line speeds, the structure and process should be reassessed.

Hot-food wrapping paper starts with the food and the way it is wrapped.

Burgers, sandwiches, croissants and fried foods have different requirements for grease, moisture vapor and holding conditions. Lightweight paper mills, coaters, printers and slitters can use real foods and wrapping methods to assess penetration by hot oil and sauces after crumpling and folding, wet tearing, moisture changes inside the pack and the resulting eating experience.

Some foods need to stay crisp; others need to retain moisture. Reducing every task to a single grease-resistance rating can overlook the experience customers actually care about.

This approach allows companies to build on familiar paper grades and processing capabilities, developing dedicated wrapping-paper specifications defined by food type and intended use.

Before testing hot-drink cups or wrapping paper with real food, check the food-contact suitability of the base paper, coatings, inks and other components under the intended processing conditions. Obtain compliance evidence for the finished article that matches the food type, temperature and contact time.

A paper-based seedling container must match the crop and operating cycle.

Paper-based propagation systems tailored to different crops and propagation cycles already exist. For new development, nurseries, growers or propagation businesses should specify the crop and irrigation, handling and transplanting methods. Partners can then jointly design the base paper’s wet support, functional lifetime and container structure.

Evaluation should cover watering, handling and transplanting, observing damage, compatibility between the material and growing medium, and root and seedling growth. Functionality that lasts too briefly or too long can affect both operations and growth, so adjustments should follow the results.

This opens opportunities for paper companies to develop functional papers and products around agricultural production tasks. Product value should be measured in seedlings that meet requirements and in operational efficiency.

Different applications require different definitions of an acceptable product.

Find a starting point among 101 joint development directions

These three examples are part of a much broader application space. Through its own application research, BIOTEN Packaging has identified 101 directions for joint development of paper-based applications, spanning 16 fields including food packaging, industrial protection, agriculture and horticulture. They are grouped into priority joint development, development subject to prerequisites, and exploratory research.

These 101 directions are BIOTEN’s independently compiled development pipeline. They are not a subset of the 136 national projects.

The application map helps businesses answer a commercially relevant question: what other products could we create by combining our paper grades, equipment and customer base?

Companies specializing in lightweight paper could explore food wraps, interleaving paper for frozen meat patties and moisture-resistant bouquet wrapping. Those with paperboard and forming capabilities could investigate structures and processes for hot-drink cups and folding meal boxes. Coaters, printers and post-print converters could work with customers on paper-based products that resist moisture and staining and retain functionality after folding.

Businesses with wet-strength paper expertise and agricultural customers could also explore seedling bags and nursery identification labels, bringing papermaking and converting capabilities into new applications.

Each direction addresses the end-use task, paper substrate and candidate functional layer, partner responsibilities and initial validation. Where the foundations are clear, begin with comparative sample trials. Where prerequisites are missing, first secure the end-use access, equipment or evaluation resources. For exploratory directions, first resolve key questions about mechanisms and potential uses.

National policy provides mechanisms for opening application scenarios, while BIOTEN’s application research helps identify joint development opportunities. They meet in the specific development tasks undertaken by businesses.

No company needs to pursue all 101 directions at once. The aim is to find an application in which its strengths can be developed further.

Budget for trials first, then calculate the cost of conforming products

Application validation consumes materials, machine time, changeovers, testing and staff effort. Before starting, partners should agree on the questions to be answered, the scope of investment, acceptance criteria and next-stage arrangements.

Each trial should end with a clear decision: expand validation, adjust the structure or process, or discontinue the current route. Trials continue to add useful information only when their results can change decisions.

When assessing economics, trial and development costs should be itemized separately. Volume manufacturing should be calculated using actual material consumption, conforming output and achievable production conditions, rather than spreading every cost across large orders that have not materialized.

The emulsion price per kilogram is only one variable. Dry coat weight, solids content at application, drying energy, line speed, forming yield, scrap and logistics can all change the outcome.

For equivalent specifications and end-use targets, paper cups can be compared by total cost per 10,000 conforming cups; wrapping paper can be assessed by the number of successfully wrapped portions. For agricultural containers, fix the crop, propagation conditions and acceptance date before calculating the associated cost per 1,000 seedlings meeting the agreed transplanting criteria, including replacement seedlings, labor and other relevant costs.

These measures bring the assessment closer to customers’ business results. Combined with comparisons under the same conditions, they help distinguish the effects of materials, processes and operating methods.

Trials consume resources; what they leave behind should be reusable capabilities.

How can mills and converters choose their roles?

Joint development can begin with an existing capability or a recurring problem.

Paper mills contribute paper grades and papermaking expertise, defining porosity, surface properties, wet strength and load-bearing requirements to identify applications that best fit their existing capabilities.

Coaters and printers contribute processing expertise, turning material compatibility, drying, winding, printing and downstream converting into repeatable processes.

Finished-product manufacturers connect structure with end use, feeding folding, forming, heat-sealing and delivery requirements back upstream. Brands and end users define the contents, operating methods and acceptance targets so that all partners work toward the same outcome.

Partners should also agree on what happens after a trial. If criteria are met, will the next step be larger-batch validation, a trial order or a procurement review? If they are not met, who will fund the next round and what will change? These points should be clear in advance.

Ownership of background technology and new results, permitted data use, licensing and subsequent supply responsibilities should also reflect each party’s contribution. Clarity gives partners willing to invest a reason to continue working together.

Local demand lists, capability-supply lists and information from organizations leading application projects can help identify partners. Publicly reproduced Zhejiang materials illustrate such mechanisms, but the announced submission deadlines for the first two batches have passed. Eligibility, submission rounds and application methods must therefore be checked against the latest valid notices.

BIOTEN connects material capabilities with customer outcomes

Over the years, DBC has worked with BASF, PhaBuilder and partners in papermaking, coating and paper packaging converting to connect material innovation, manufacturing capabilities and end-use needs, continually developing paper-based packaging products and solutions for global markets.

The value of this long-term collaboration lies in translating each partner’s expertise into product performance, manufacturing stability and lasting competitiveness to serve application needs in different markets.

Building on PHA water-based barrier technology and application research, BIOTEN Packaging connects material selection, process compatibility and finished-product validation. Serving different markets means meeting customers’ end-use requirements while accounting for local processing conditions, applicable rules and total cost.

For companies interested in joint development, BIOTEN’s 101 paper-based application directions offer a starting point. Cooperation begins with a defined end use, a representative product and actual production-line conditions, with partners developing practical product specifications, process parameters and application documentation together.

Bring an existing paper grade, a converting line or a recurring packaging problem, and work with BIOTEN to select your first joint development application.

By thoroughly developing one application, companies can turn material and manufacturing strengths into lasting reasons for customers to choose them.