Mars, Suppliers, & VCs Invoke Health & Safety While Pursuing Sustainability

Mars' material science lead Eric Klingenberg, packaging supplier Atlantic Packaging, and venture capital Safer Made weigh in on what’s next for materials, considerations for human health and safety, and paths to circularity at Rethinking Materials today.

Eric Mars 2

Eric Klingenberg, lead, Material Science at Mars, offered a pragmatic view of how major brands are navigating the future of packaging innovation at the intersection of sustainable packaging and human health and safety at today's Rethinking Materials. Joined by Wes Carter of materials supplier/converter Atlantic Packaging and Adrian Horotan of VC Safer Made, Klingenberg focused on scientific diligence, collaborative supply chains, and the constructive role regulation can play in shaping progress.

For Klingenberg, chemical safety and material vetting should not be treated purely as risk management.

“We consider ourselves an agricultural company—our products become food. So safety is critical. As we evaluate new packaging materials, we ask: What are the raw inputs? Where do they go? Will they biodegrade safely? Will they actually be accepted in composting systems? That takes real science, and we invest heavily to get it right before launching anything.” 

Mars’s due diligence, he explained, doesn’t stop at suppliers or converters—it now extends deep into the waste stream.

“You have to put on your boots and go around the composting facility,” he said. “The last thing we want is to cause a problem downstream. We talk directly with waste operators: Is this recyclable? Compostable? We don’t want any surprises.”

Working Downstream: The Waste System Matters

Klingenberg emphasized that Mars has shifted from a “hand-off” supply chain to a hands-on, end-to-end approach—starting earlier in material sourcing and finishing with infrastructure feasibility.

“In the past, we worked with converters who came with solutions. We’d accept or reject. Now we’re partnering upstream and downstream—raw material suppliers, yes, but also waste systems. We’re asking: What data exists? What health and environmental information is there on new materials? If we don’t know, we slow down and do our own science.” 

That diligence, he acknowledged, can be frustrating for startups wanting to move fast. But the payoff is stronger long-term trust—and fewer “regrettable substitutions.”

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