How Burton Snowboards is Shaping the Future of Sustainable Packaging

In this episode, Cory Connors reconnects with his friend Mitch Rovito from Burton Snowboards following a tour of Burton's Vermont facility. Mitch shares his unique origin story — writing a mock cover letter to Burton as an 18-year-old packaging student at RIT — and how that dream became reality. The conversation explores Burton's deep-rooted culture of curiosity and sustainability under founder Jake Burton's legacy and current owner Donna Carpenter, the organic partnership between Burton and Atlantic Packaging's New Earth Project, and the innovative strides Burton is making toward eliminating single-use plastics from its packaging.

Key Topics Discussed:

• Mitch's early passion for both snowboarding and packaging science, and how he discovered packaging through a chance visit to RIT in ninth grade
• Burton's culture of curiosity and innovation, rooted in founder Jake Burton's legacy and sustained by owner Donna Carpenter
• The advantages of being a privately held company in driving aggressive sustainability decisions
• How the Burton–Atlantic Packaging/New Earth Project partnership formed organically through a chance connection with Don Meek in Vermont
• The "We Do This Together" philosophy and open-source approach to sustainability collaboration across brands and suppliers
• Julia Marsh of Sway and the role of inspired, passionate individuals in driving the sustainable packaging movement
• FiberStrap and its application with Ibis Cycles as an example of cross-brand sustainability innovation
• The See Change Sessions event in Vermont — its growth, unique format blending wellness with industry collaboration, and impact on attendees
• Burton's progress from ~6% to ~90% elimination of single-use plastics in retail consumer-facing packaging
• Challenges of building global, omnichannel packaging while navigating evolving EPR regulations across the US, Europe, and beyond
• The Digital Product Passport (DPP) initiative from the EU and what supply chain transparency will mean for brands
• FSC certification, recycled content targets, and managing packaging development 24 months ahead of product launch
• Ongoing challenges with snowboard shrink wrap and the search for viable, scalable alternatives

Resources Mentioned:

• Burton Snowboards
• New Earth Project
• See Change Sessions
• Sway
• FibreStrap
• Ibis Cycles
• Bluesign Certification
• California EPR Packaging Program

Contact:

Listeners interested in learning more about Burton's sustainability initiatives can visit burton.com. For information about the New Earth Project and Atlantic Packaging, reach out through atlanticpkg.com.

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This podcast is an independent production and the podcast production is an original work of the author. All rights of ownership and reproduction are retained—copyright 2022.

Transcript

0:06

Welcome to Sustainable Packaging with Cory Connors presented by Atlantic Packaging. I'm your host, Cory Connors. In today's episode, I connected with my friend, Mr. Mitch Rovito from Burton. We dive deep into some great stories about how Burton is innovating in the sustainable packaging space and how I got to tour their facility in Vermont. What a cool experience. I'd also like to thank our sponsors, 3M and Specright. We couldn't do the show without them. Welcome back, Mr. Mitch Rovito, my very good friend from Burton. It's so great to have you on again. Great to see you, Cory. Good to catch up again. I truly enjoyed our tour of your facility. We'll talk about that some more in this episode. We have some great history with Burton, my family does, and we'll talk about that a little bit if we can get to it. But tell us about you before we get into too much. Tell us about your background, how it shaped your sustainability focus there at Burton. Yeah, I, uh, I feel like I've told this story a few times. I think I even told it on stage at see change when you're out here, but, um, I'm one of that maybe oddballs in the packaging industry in that I found out about packaging at a very young age. Um, I was, uh, the younger brother visiting a college campus as my older brother was, uh, exploring his career path and We went to RIT and in one of the visits I met Tom Voss, at that time the chair of the packaging program there. And if anyone had the opportunity to meet Tom Voss, uh you'll get this. imagine Gene Wilder's Willy Wonka character, but instead of being passionate about sweets and candy, he was passionate about packaging. And it was just infectious. And he was just fun and engaging and so passionate about what he did. Both my brother and I were just like, we latched on. And he actually went into packaging, my older brother, for a little bit. He's not in that industry anymore. that was when I was in maybe ninth grade. So in ninth and 10th grade, I decided that packaging at RIT was a path I wanted to take. And yeah, I don't know how old you are in ninth and 10th grade, but how many 14 or 15 year olds are kind of set on their career path at that time. And I was also a passionate snowboarder. so went into packaging, did a lot of riding when I was at RIT down at Bristol Mountain and traveled the world after that to ride. And there was always this beacon that was, how do I figure out how to get into this snowboard slash snow sports industry in this field? Like you see the world of the industry of packaging. But then when you look at the snow sports industry, I always had this like Does any, do any snowboard companies have a package engineer? How did they even get this done? And here I am 20 years later, the packaging manager at Burton and there really wasn't a packaging engineer before me. There are people who did production work and handled packaging as product developers, but I'm definitely the first person at Burton with a packaging science degree in. coming from the packaging industry. But this anecdote that I, or the story that I like to tell is in my freshman year at RIT, I took uh a career class that was like resume writing and cover letter writing and practice how you'll go and apply for jobs. we had to pick a conceptual dream job. And funny enough, when I was 18 years old, I wrote a mock cover letter to Burton Snowboards about how I would want to be the package engineer there. So definitely full circle as the world of passions kind of merge. It was meant to be, for sure. You believed it into existence. I love it. Well, I've got my Burton shirt on. I'm a huge fan. I've been riding Burton for most of my snowboarding career here in Oregon and just love your products and your brand and what you stand for. I want to talk about the culture there at Burton because I think you are leaders in sustainability, not only in packaging, but in everything that you do. Can you talk to us about what it's really like to work there and how that culture makes you inspired to do your job? Yeah, so the culture really stems from Jake, the founder, who passed in 2019. But Jake left this legacy of curiosity, this desire to, I mean, the whole reason Burton exists is Jake had this snurfer, this little backyard toy, and he saw the opportunity that it could just be improved on. So it started not as a thought about how to make a career and make an industry, but it really started as a, I have a curious mind and I think there's ways that I can tinker and make this better for myself, but also better for other people. And that just, that's stuck. That's how we approach product. That's how we approach our thought. That's how we approach engagement. It's like, there's, there's always a curiosity and a desire to do things better. And the, the, I mean, the, the big piece to our, Maybe the ability to do that is the fact that we're still privately held. We're still owned by Donna Carpenter, Jake's wife and partner through the whole thing. Donna has been there since day one. And, you know, when you have one shareholder uh who, in her words, gives a shit and, know, she cares about sustainability, you're, mean, you experienced that too at Atlantic packaging. It's, like the superpower to be able to. really do what's right, even if it may break traditional business norms. that like you pair that with this curiosity and this tenacity to innovate and do things differently. And all of a sudden you bring in sustainability and this there's this desire to always be looking forward and doing things better. So there's a culture there around innovation. There's a culture around progression. But Donna had a vision when other team members came to her and said, Hey, we really need to start doing things like looking at blue sign certification and traceability and supply chain. It's not really happening in our industry. And, um, you know, I'll, let those people talk about the bigger picture sustainability things or some good content on the website and some other great talks. Um, but like as someone who gets to operate in the slipstream or in the wake of that work. It's pretty profound, especially when I speak with my peers in packaging who are up against all of these hurdles, not just the challenges of sustainable packaging design and innovation, but also the hurdles of how do you convince people who are not convinced that we need to really be proactive and aggressive towards protecting the planet? Hey friends, we are going to take a quick break to thank our sponsors. Please be sure to support them. Are you shipping with recycled corrugated? 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Specright, the intelligent foundation for every product. Discover more at specright.com. In packaging, still, I know a guy, but what happens when you don't? Or when you need something beyond your network? Forest is built for that. A platform that connects packaging knowledge with AI intelligence, giving you access to verified suppliers, real capabilities, and actionable data in one place. Take action at speed. Execute with intelligence. That's Forest. Yeah, that's a, and you could feel it as you're walking through the facility. You could feel this kind of environment of, hey, you know, be yourself and innovate and make some changes and be who you think you need to be to make this a better place for all of us. It just felt like a comfortable environment. It didn't feel like a corporation. And I agree, Atlantic and. packaging in a new earth project is very similar to that. I reached out to one of our senior leaders, our mutual friend Don Meek the other day and had kind of a crazy idea and he's like, I love it. Let's do it. You know, that's a great idea. Right? You know, I totally support you. And it's just, wow, what a feeling to work in a place where you can, you can innovate and be aggressively sustainable. Like, like us. Yeah. Well said. Yeah. Well, let's talk about that relationship a little bit. How did you get involved with the New Earth Project and Atlantic Packaging? We have a very special partnership. The organic nature of our relationship, feel like is the maybe the theme or the motif to so much of the work that I'm doing. And I attribute so much of our, data that shows progress and success and what we've been able to accomplish at Buran is totally to this like this aligned partnership. And that's really where it came from is Don Meek is the first person that I met. Don was in Vermont. for a sustainability related event, gosh, maybe 2021 or 2022, and was talking with someone else in Vermont who was in the outdoor action sports industry. And they were like, hey, you should chat with Mitch Eppert. And I feel like you would get along and Don and I connected. And it was just like instant. It was just yes and yes and over and over again, talking about what we're working on. that was really... The first time I felt this, this amplifier that when, when you come to the table with similar goals, like you go twice as far, it's not, it's not linear. Um, there's, there's this like, there's this power that happens and Don and I experienced that together and we've talked about that sense. And that's like really where a new earth project, the tone of we do this together, um, which is a tagline. I know that that. your team has used since the beginning. It's like, can't do it alone. We can't make change. We're seeing this shift where consumers can only push back so hard to say we're sick of waste. We're sick of seeing pollution. We're sick of the human health impacts. And like, we all have to do it. Consumers need to advocate, us as brands need to advocate, you as suppliers need to advocate. And if we do it together, we'll see real change because it truly is a paradigm shift. So Don and I met, we started working together. We had all these opportunities to share ideas and share resources and think of it bigger than just Atlantic packaging winning Burton's packaging business and Burton needing a supplier. It was this like, yes, but also what if we throw all of our ideas on the table and maybe what won't work for us will work for something else. And I just saw a video of your team sharing something with Ibis. Cycles, which is a, amazing bicycle brand and, um, using fiber strap and fiber strap was one of those solutions that I had met Sigrid at fiber strap. And I was like, I don't really see an application that works well on Burton's products, but I know people who, do, and I was like, a new earth project can activate this. And I know that like, this will be such a cool resource. So making that connection and then seeing fiber strap just like blowing up right now is like. It's so special. that's such an example of what we do this together, I feel like means to me is sustainability. We all live on the same planet. There isn't a competitive advantage to reducing our impact to the place that we call home. Yeah, right. Like it or not, we're all in this together, period. And we do this together as such a wonderful feeling, because you're right. It's kind of like open-sourced ideas and open-source concepts where we can work together. And it's such a great feeling to be able to sit at a table with you and Julia from Sway and Don and the team and just talk about, well, what about this? Have we thought about this? And have we ever tried this? material for that project. And it feels like we're making progress together because we are. And like you, like you mentioned about, we talked a little bit about Patagonia, you and Patagonia, we're working on the same projects at the same time and didn't even know it. But then you came up with a very similar solution. And I think that's where kind of that great minds think alike and we can all work together and learn from each other. Yeah. a special call out. Like what a special human Julia is. Something else that I think about when we talk about the, do this together and like coming, convening like we did at Sea Change this year, there's an inspiration that happens. I think of this because of Julia, because anytime Julia is on stage speaking or just around her, you're just inspired. to be creative and you just like, all of a sudden you're like, no, I want to know more about how I can be a part of saving the world through seaweed. like, as funny and fun as that is to like, you know, make a comment on that, like there's something deep there. There's something about being inspired by passion and being inspired by what other people are doing in passionate spaces. And I feel like we were talking about this even before we hopped on here and snowboarding is this, Like it's more than just a sport, even though it's easy for me. I say this all the time. Like I make, I help package toys and package stuff that you use with toys. And as like funny as that is like it's true, but also these toys are devices and equipment that bring people to community and bring people to connection and bring people to the outdoors, to the mountains where you're more aware of the environmental impact. mean, it doesn't take, especially in the Northeast uh or out West this year, it doesn't take much time when you're paying attention to snowpack to see the real impacts of climate change and global warming. Despite all of the other horrors that we hear every single day with new and new datasets coming out. But yeah, there's this there's this X factor this like, like a soul piece of this connection with with passionate people who are doing something that really kind of makes you feel alive. Do agree? my gosh. Yes. we're talking about Julia Marsh, from sway, uh, the, the CEO and co-founder, she's an incredible person. And, uh it was so amazing to sit with you and her, just the three of us for, I don't know, it felt like 20 minutes, but it could have been two minutes, and just be around each other and just vibe from each other and learn from each other about what's going on in our lives and how we can help each other. There's no, hey, I want to, how can we make money from this? It's, it doesn't even come into the, the, the realm of the discussion. It's how can we move this progression forward together and help this planet and help the people that care about this planet and the people on it. And I think you're exactly right. It's just, it's a feeling. It's a, it's a way of living differently. And it's a mindset where I can call you or her and just say, hey, I have this thought. And you'll listen and you'll say, well, okay, that's great. But what about this? And we can just bounce ideas off each other. And it's a real collaboration. Yeah, I love that and that's so true. And it's a true friendship. You know, I talk about this a lot in my career. I've been in packaging for 30 years and my focus has always been building true friendships with people that I really care for and that care for me and that we can build things together. And it's incredible what happens when you actually do that. And you're just not focused on the wrong things. yeah, FiberStrap, Sway, really huge innovations coming. to the market and uh you're a big part of that Mitch. So thank you. Well, let's talk about that event a little bit. See change sessions. That's hard to say in Vermont is it's an event that our friend Don Meek has really spearheaded the packaging matters part of it. There's a think four or five different tracks. You and I were involved with the packaging matters track. Do you want to tell the audience about that event and why it's an important one to visit? I'd love to. I'll zoom out to zoom back in, which is a common theme with the way that I process. So I've been attending See Change since the first time Don and I met was Don's first See Change. And that was when I joined. was out here saying he was going to that. I was like, I actually didn't have this event on my radar. I would love to tune in. At that point, the event was in its infancy and was really figuring out what it was all about. that was, yeah, in 2021 or 2022, kind of the return from isolation and COVID lockdown. So it was like half virtual, mostly virtual, a little in-person. And to see that event go from this like wide lens of sustainability, climate advocacy, activism. And to see it from then through two sessions every single year, to see the packaging topic just grow and grow and grow. A big part of that is the support that Atlantic Packaging and a New Earth Project has offered to them. But just to see the engagement and the audience grow. There was an unknown appetite early on, and that appetite just grew and like here we are. don't know how many people were at this session, but we had multiple packaging tracks talking about all of these topics. These like really well-known brands, smaller brands, suppliers, like there was like someone from the entire chain that impacts packaging all in the same room together. And it was so special and so inspiring. Certainly the first event I've ever been to where there was dancing and where there was yoga. Yeah. Yeah. Breathing and surfing and I don't know, stand up paddling and uh just a totally different way of engaging with each other. That is outside of my comfort zone, but I think pushed me into a better place. And I think is, is really important for all of us in this industry to kind of push our limits and say, I'm going to try something new today. And I'm going to, I'm going to go ride a standup paddleboard with my friend Mitch. And, know, I'm going to try a yoga session or, or, um, have a different way of thinking about things in life and such a small and intimate event. But I think it's one of the most valuable events I've ever been to, honestly. that's such a good call out. feel like I kind of forget how special that is. That's such an ingrained part of culture in Vermont is this paddle boarding and connecting through activity. But the way that they structure the event is really profound. The fact that like you said, I'm going to go paddle board with my friend Mitch, but chances are you're going to paddle board with your new friend. You know, you're making these new friends trying new things and you and they set the tone that it's not only encouraged but it's supported to go out of your comfort zone to To do a group dance warm-up if that's never been a thing you've done. You're just like well, we're all doing this I don't feel like there's a risk in just like socially engaging with this and all of a sudden you leave just so thinking more expansively and And also like it changes your rhythm. And that's something that even after this event, I was connecting with one of my coworkers who joined me, Haley. I think you met Haley there, who is helping us with a lot of the EPR work. And it's, just been so awesome to have some of that support. And that was her first see change. And when she left, that was something she commented on is just this like pace and cadence of life change. You're used to your work day and your routine and you go to this thing and you're You're taking these four breaks and you're learning about emotional intelligence and you're doing exercises and empathetic listening. And then you're going back into innovation and ideation and collaboration. And then you're taking a minute and there's this like, go outside, go connect with your body, go connect with the world, go connect with other people. And you leave, not like you leave a normal conference where you're like, I learned new information. I'm ready to go back and like activate this. You leave being like, I feel like my life has changed. I feel like the way I'm existing, my heartbeat, my resonance, my posture has changed. it's hard to describe that to someone who hasn't been to a see change event. Right. And the amazing brands that are made locally, they're like butternut Mountain Farms, uh maple syrup. I got to tour that with my friend Hugh Curtis and Mikey Pashuto. And then we went to tour Burton. And then later that night we had Ben & Jerry's ice cream. And just like, I feel like I got the total Vermont experience. And, uh you know, I don't know what else we could add in there to make it even more Vermont. well tell Hugh I'm coming for him. I'm boiling my syrup now and I'm going to produce all of two gallons at the end. Tell him butter not better watch out. Rovito nut, Mountain Farms. Yeah, I love it. Well, that's perfect. Well, let's talk about the future. What's next for Burton? What do you what are your you've done so much in advance of extended producer responsibility you've done so much and it's kind of leading the charge. Do you, is there still ways to innovate? Is there still, goals that you have to meet? Great question and very, very big question. So I'll try to keep it as simple as I can. When I started, which was in 2021, we were working towards our 2025 sustainability goals. Every five years, we have a self-reporting year that our sustainability team holds us accountable for. Emily Foster, Taylor Ralph really are my counterparts in that. Before... When I started, Ali Kinney was still involved and Ali really built the program at Burton and Don and Ali go way back. And they really like paved the path for that. And so now we have these self reporting goals. We have, it's an entire program with a team that leads that, which is like really wonderful. And it's all, since day one has been focused on science-based targets and industry relevance and. where we are now with all of these regulations four years ago, most of these were just concepts. And now we're seeing EPR all across the US, EPR in Europe, uh waste management in Europe. There's just all of these different things, uh green claims initiative, DPP, all these things that are coming out. And to have had a sustainability team, even though they weren't packaging experts, they looked to the science, they used the... responsible packaging movement. looked at what Patagonia is doing and what other teams were doing out there. And it was really aligned to say, here's the direction that our industry is going in and here we are with EPR activating. And we have been working towards what the structure of EPR is. We've had such a heads up and a runway on that. And so we had done the California EPR benchmarking reporting, which was really the first year I came. And I think I don't have the actual numbers, we were in our one of our goals of being free from single use plastics in our retail consumer facing packaging. We were in this single digit percentage. I want to say 6%. I can get back to you with the numbers. That was in 23. We were doing that benchmarking. Now we're in the like 90%. We've we've really stripped so much of that single use plastic packaging. And that's been a big focus of my work is not only looking at alternate materials, but alternate systems, way we can change our supply chain, the way we can engage with consumers to essentially say, hey, packaging is not meant to live forever. uh Our goal is to package something to effectively get it to you so that the product is good and then this packaging can be consumed technically back as recycling or back into the environment as home compostable. in some instances reusable as a functional extension of your product. And like to actually see that gap between 23 and 25 or 26, I forget what the second reporting year is, to see that huge jump and to be like, EPR reporting actually becomes a little bit more simple when everything you use is fiber, not everything. We're still more progress for us to be made, but to move the things that we can move without massively disrupting our partners like our 3PLs, our shipping partners, our key dealers, like we can't make changes just to support EPR and then have it be an absolute nightmare for the people who engage with the consumers and help them with the products. There's gotta be a balance there. So to see that before and after is pretty cool. Well, and I think it speaks to you and your team for thinking ahead and thinking about, let's do this today. So that in two, three years, it's, um, you know, it's an easy transition or there is no transition, uh, because you've already done it. and I think it shows that it's possible. It shows other brands. Uh, and I want to say this again, you're uh a real leader in the industry and I want to give you a shout out for that because it's not easy what you're doing. I know. I work on it every day with other brands that are struggling sometimes to accomplish what you've accomplished. So nice job. Well, thank you. Yeah. and it, it's, it's not just me, even though, um, where, where a lean packaging team, it's two of us. It's, yeah, it's me from the, um, operations and strategy side of things. And then it's my counterpart, Maricar, who is a seasoned production designer. And, you know, she's able to activate all of these things, um, from our die lines and our mechanical files. And I mean, we can do thousands and thousands of, of. art files every year, all of which change every single season with changing regulations, which is something I don't hear too many people talking about is like, we're adding a logo for waste management in France. And then the next year it changes and there's one for Spain and then there's a new one for China standards. And when you build global omnichannel packaging, like it's, it's a moving target for sure. And, you know, staying up on all those iterations, trying to be, get ahead of the curve to we work, we're a product development. And so we're working 24 months ahead of when product comes to cycle. So here it is middle of winter, 2026. And we're like preparing our work files for our winter 28 product. And so trying to like plan ahead when you're seeing things like, there's like some lawsuits with these EPR things and there's these potential changes, you know, like we have to be really nimble and we have to be willing to. to redo work as new information comes out and the stats of how many new waste management, specifically materials, packaging-based laws that are coming on the global market these days is breaking records. um that's our big challenge right now is really just staying in tune with the horizon scanning. What's happening next? What's changing? And how do we prepare for that from a making sure that our inventory is managed well. We're not designing something only to find out that it's got to change. And we've already gone to production. And now we have to figure out a way to use up that packaging or responsibly dispose of that. But to your original question, which is like, what's next, is we still have these goals of reducing or completely exiting our use of single-use plastics with packaging. And we still have some items that have plastic on them. A lot of them for good reason, market disruption. isn't a great alternative out there. Things are too costly or lower performance. Things like snowboard shrink wrap. Almost everyone in our industry still uses shrink film on their products. It's an expectation of the consumer to open that crisp new snowboard that you know came right off. You're the first person to touch it. while there are great reusable options with protective bags that you can store for a long time. I've worked with the team over at Vela and Seamen Paper and even with the Atlantic packaging, the solution center to work on ways to automate this and get this into equipment. The solutions just really aren't quite there yet. And the disruption is far greater than maybe the benefit is. And we're still assessing that. I can't say that confidently. That's just where we're at. That's innovation. You you try, you fail, you try. The goal is to... fail fast and fail often so you can get to a better solution. So single use plastic packaging reduction is a big one. Recycled content is continuing to tighten up our supply chain and work with our tier two material suppliers, work with our factories who source packaging locally, make sure that we're understanding and we're connected in that strategy so that where there are options to increase recycled content and reduce potential uh landfill impact, we can do that where it makes sense. You we don't want to do 100 % recycled content on things that are going to fail or we have to double the thickness of a master carton because at 100 % it doesn't have the stacking strength or the burst strength that we need. Finding that sweet spot that is what is the what is the most we can do to reduce our reliance on virgin materials? And then Continuing to drive FSC certifications or just like chain of custody in general supply chain transparency and supply chain traceability is so huge. And especially as DPP is on the horizon of, like someone described the DPP to me, digital product passport for your listeners who are unfamiliar with this, which is an initiative coming out of the EU around managing material waste, mostly around textiles. There's also like rubber and tires and electronics, but as it relates to packaging and textiles, it's the comparison someone told me is basically every product someday will have a VIN number like a car and you'll be able to look up a car facts history. So you'd be able to say, what is this shirt made of? Where was it made? Where did all the materials come from to build this garment? Just like kind of wild to think about access to that data. And as I mean, it's, focused on the, your consumer of Being as educated as possible when you're shopping to make sure that you're purchasing things that align with your ethics. You might know parts of the world that are problematic with organic cotton and unfair labor, and you want to choose to avoid buying cotton garments from that part of the world. And that gives you the power to make that decision. But from a brand side, the level of data and the level of work that needed to bring that together is huge. so uh having real accredited third party certification bodies for all of them, materials that we can like FSC to avoid any sort of problematic or unsustainable sourcing of our fiber materials is really important, but it's a big challenge to really track that down when you work across the globe. Well, keep up the amazing work, Mitch. uh You and your team are leaders and you're doing a great thing. So thank you for that. I look forward to seeing you September 15th through 17th at the Sea Change Sessions in Vermont. And yeah, thank you again, sir. Appreciate you. Thanks, Cory. Really looking forward to hosting you in Vermont again. too.