Although eye-catching from a marketing standpoint, beverage producers struggle to crack the code on a cost-effective and sustainable way to package beverages in clear cans.
Orka's tall, skinny can is made of transparent plastic, starkly contrasting with the fully aluminum can typically found in energy drink aisles.
Via Orka's Linkedin
In the crowded beverage space, innovative packaging can be a make-or-break feature. Visually striking and social media-friendly, transparent cans are likely to offer instant consumer intrigue. However, according to a recent Wall Street Journal article, the reality of manufacturing drinks in clear cans is a costly, complex, and often demoralizing challenge that leaves companies with a difficult, if not impossible, to recycle container.
Orka Beverage Co., a startup founded by two Gen Z entrepreneurs, was the focus of the WSJ piece after a TikTok post showcasing their caffeine-infused water went viral. Viewers were captivated by the packaging alone—a tall, skinny can made of transparent plastic, a stark contrast to the fully aluminum can typically found in energy drink aisles.
As with all things internet, there was more than meets the eye when it came to Orka’s history creating the package. Behind the scenes, Orka was teetering on the brink of collapse, struggling to solve a cascade of manufacturing issues that came with trying to commercialize a clear can design.
The primary issue? The beverage industry’s infrastructure is designed for aluminum, not plastic.
Sensor Failures: Standard production lines rely on sensors calibrated to detect metal. Transparent plastic often goes unnoticed, causing cans to be misrouted or ignored entirely.
Sealing Challenges: Marrying an aluminum lid to a plastic body requires specialized techniques. Improper seals led to leaks and compromised product integrity.
Mechanical Disruptions: The structural differences in plastic cans—such as deeper indentations at the base—interfered with the vacuum suction used to move cans down the line. Orka’s early runs were plagued by cans literally falling off conveyors.
After three failed production runs in three different factories, the company finally found a partner in Texas capable of resolving the technical issues. But the road to success nearly bankrupted the startup.
Larger players haven’t fared much better. Monster Energy launched its Hydro line in 2017 using clear plastic cans, but the launch was met with significant delays and distribution challenges. Within a few years, the company abandoned the format in favor of traditional plastic bottles. Today, those early clear cans are collectors’ items on eBay, a testament to their novelty and short-lived run.
For startups and challenger brands, a clear can can be the visual hook that turns curiosity into conversion. But getting that packaging from concept to shelf is a logistical gauntlet. For most major U.S. beverage companies clear cans simply aren’t worth the headache. One of the significant strikes against clear cans is questionable sustainability. This clear can left a Chicago-land MRF scratching its head on how exactly to recycle it.Photo courtesy of Matt ReynoldsAccording to packaging experts, the high cost of adapting production lines, combined with limited material recycling capabilities and environmental pressures, makes the effort hard to justify, especially for established brands that don’t need to make a splash with packaging alone.
On the issue of sustainability, Orka claims in the WSJ article that "its can is made from 100% recyclable materials, but the ability to recycle mixed materials varies by state."
Packaging World ran this statement by the head of a Materials Recovery Facility (MRF) to get their opinion.
Jeff Snyder, Senior Vice President Recycling & Sustainability at Rumpke Waste & Recycling in Cincinnati, laid out the difficulties in recycling the clear can since mixed substrates are very hard to recycle, as they contaminate each other.
"The two materials would need to be separated. If the aluminum lid stays with the PET (polyethylene terephthalate) body, the eddy current will pick up the aluminum and take the whole package to the aluminum bunker, contaminating the aluminum UBCs (used beverage cans)," he said. "If the NIR (near infrared sorting) Optic for PET recovery is before the eddy current, then the package will go with PET contaminating the PET with Aluminum. Neither scenario is good."
He said that this doesn't even consider the PE (polyethylene) pressure-sensitive label, which could misdirect the entire package to the PE side of the recycling stream.
Snyder also added that the sorting process does not vary by state and is consistent across the country in all MRFs.
Packaging World reached out to Orka to comment on Snyder's claims, but was still awaiting a reply when the story was posted.
Undoubtedly, consumer appetite for novel packaging remains strong, especially among younger demographics. But until manufacturing technology evolves and sustainability concerns around plastic are more broadly addressed, clear cans will likely remain a niche offering, embraced only by those with the patience, budget, and resilience to overcome the technical barriers.
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