Wilmington-headquartered Atlantic Packaging, a distributor of industrial packaging materials, has launched a venture capital investment firm. 

New Earth Ventures is the dedicated investment and innovation arm of Atlantic Packaging, and according to an SEC filing, the firm is targeting a $25 million fund. 

“We launched New Earth Ventures because packaging is one of the most essential and overlooked opportunities in the global economy,” said Wes Carter, president of Atlantic Packaging, in the press release. “Brands are under real pressure right now — costs are up, supply chains are uncertain, and the impact of packaging on the global environment is accelerating.”

Led by managing partner Matt Saunders and Carter, New Earth Ventures focuses on early-stage packaging startups and Seed and Series A investments, aiming to make four to five investments per year. The firm officially launched last week, Saunders said. 

According to Saunders, the timing of the firm’s launch is a response to rising inflation, energy prices and packaging costs. It also aligns with an inflection point in AI technology and regulatory trends, such as new plastic regulations in California, Oregon and Europe, he said. 

“Our idea is that, given there are so many unique ideas and technologies – whether materials, software, AI, automation tech – we have the tools to help introduce founders to our wider supply chain, to our customers, to our assets,” said Saunders on Tuesday. 

“Our goal is to help accelerate these companies into business, ideally in a way that’s deeply sustainable and that makes good business sense,” he added. 

Companies that the firm invests in will gain access to Atlantic Packaging’s industry expertise, customer ecosystem and operational infrastructure, according to the release.

The fund is launching with strategic support from the Australian-based Minderoo Foundation and The Fund at Hula, a Vermont-based capital fund. 

So far, the firm has invested in three companies: California-based specification data management company Specright; Forest, an AI packaging intelligence platform; and Sway, a material innovation company developing plastic made from seaweed.  

The firm is focusing on a combined addressable market exceeding $500 billion, including alternative packaging solutions, packaging automation solutions and supply chain AI tools, according to the release. 

“We want to be the most radically innovative thinkers in packaging,” Saunders said, “not just bringing new materials to market, but changing the way that everything moves through the supply chain.”

According to the press release, Atlantic Packaging is the largest privately held industrial packaging company in North America. 

“Atlantic’s a big enough, more than a billion‑dollar‑a‑year business, and we touch so many companies in the Fortune 1,000,” Saunders said. “We’re sourcing from countries all over the world. We deal with import, export. We have a logistics network within the U.S. to connect to our customers. If it’s a type of packaging, we probably convert it, sell it or make it.”

According to Saunders, the goal is to transform the supply chain through new technologies and a commitment to sustainability.

“We’re always looking at new materials that have less of an impact on operations and the world than plastic,” he said.