Cabrellon Srl is Eastman's longest-standing customer using Eastman Tritan™ copolyester in industrial chocolate mold applications. The Italian chocolate mold manufacturer, based in Longare, Vicenza, celebrates its 60th anniversary this year. And to mark this milestone, Cabrellon is adopting Eastman Tritan™ Renew, a copolyester made with certified recycled content* through Eastman's molecular recycling technology.
The announcement also highlights the role of Leone 1857, the celebrated Piedmontese confectioner, which adopted Cabrellon's Tritan chocolate molds more than two years ago. Together, the three companies represent something rare in the industry: a long, deliberate and entirely voluntary move toward a BPA-free chocolate mold material — taken years before regulation made it a requirement.
Sixty years of Cabrellon craftsmanship
Founded in 1966 by Silvio Cabrellon as a small mechanical workshop, Cabrellon evolved into a global leader in industrial chocolate mold manufacturing after an early collaboration with the confectionery industry redirected the company's focus toward precision plastic molds for chocolate. Six decades later, the company designs and produces the full spectrum of chocolate molds — from pralines and bonbons to hollow seasonal figures and tablet molds — entirely in-house at its facility in the town of Longare, serving artisan chocolatiers and industrial producers around the world.
"Reaching 60 years is a milestone that belongs to every customer, every employee and every partner who has trusted us along the way," said Cinzia Cabrellon, CEO and general manager of Cabrellon. "Tritan has been part of that story for a very long time. We were early to believe that a BPA-free copolyester could match, and in some respects exceed, what polycarbonate offered for chocolate molds. Sixty years in, we are still doing what we did at the beginning: looking ahead, choosing materials we are proud of and helping our customers do the same."
A Tritan story that started before the EU regulation
Long before the European Commission published Regulation (EU) 2024/3190 — which restricts the use of BPA and other bisphenols in food-contact materials, driving the chocolate industry's transition away from traditional polycarbonate — Cabrellon was already offering its customers an alternative. Working with Eastman, the company introduced chocolate molds made with Tritan to the European market over a decade before the regulatory shift.
BPA-free Tritan was engineered by Eastman to deliver the performance that demanding food-contact applications require. For chocolate mold makers and chocolatiers, that means impact and shatter resistance, dimensional stability under repeated use, excellent mold release for intricate designs, and dishwasher durability. These characteristics match or improve in several ways the polycarbonate experience operators are accustomed to, particularly for larger and more complex mold designs. Tritan is cleared for food contact by both the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA). It is produced and supplied at commercial scale, giving mold manufacturers and brand owners confidence in consistent, reliable availability.
"Cabrellon saw what Tritan could do for the chocolate industry before almost anyone else did," said Dirk DiSantis, Eastman commercial director. "They did not wait for a regulation to tell them that a BPA-free material with polycarbonate-like performance was the right choice. They made the choice for their customers and for the chocolatiers using their molds every day. Sixty years of Cabrellon, and more than a decade of Cabrellon and Eastman together in Tritan, is a story about conviction as much as it is about chemistry."
Leone 1857: a Tritan customer from the start
Among the chocolate makers that recognized the value of Tritan early is Leone 1857, one of Europe's oldest confectioners. Founded in 1857 in Piedmont, Italy, and today headquartered in Collegno near Turin, Leone is known for its pastilles, jellies, licorice and a growing chocolate range. All confections are produced in-house since the company expanded into chocolate production at its modernized Collegno facility, called “the factory of happiness.”
“For Leone, every choice we make in production is a choice about the trust our customers place in us,” said Fabio Allaix, Leone 1857 research and development manager. “When Cabrellon introduced us to Tritan molds, we immediately saw their potential as the right material for our chocolate — safe, precise, durable and BPA-free. After carrying out several trials and confirming the material’s performance, we decided to rely on Tritan for the development of our new molds.”
Why the industry is catching up
For decades, polycarbonate was the default material for industrial chocolate molds. After the EFSA reassessed BPA in 2023 and greatly lowered the safe daily intake, the European Commission adopted Regulation (EU) 2024/3190. This rule restricts BPA and related bisphenols in food-contact materials, including reusable products such as chocolate molds. Mold manufacturers and chocolate producers across Europe are now actively seeking alternatives that preserve the durability and operational efficiency their production environments demand.
Cabrellon and Leone 1857 are not in that search. They made their choice years ago.
The next chapter: Cabrellon adds Tritan Renew
To mark its 60th anniversary and continue the trajectory of innovation that defines the company, Cabrellon is expanding its chocolate mold portfolio to include molds produced with Tritan Renew. This copolyester offers the same performance, food-contact safety and BPA-free formulation that Cabrellon's customers already trust in Tritan with the added benefit of certified recycled content produced through Eastman's molecular recycling technology. The recycled content is certified by the International Sustainability and Carbon Certification (ISCC) using mass balance allocation, allowing customers to reduce the carbon footprint of their molds without compromising on performance, clarity or compliance.
For Cabrellon, adding Tritan Renew is not a transition away from Tritan — it is an extension of a long-standing commitment. Existing Tritan molds, including those used by Leone 1857, remain a core part of the company's offerings. Tritan Renew is impact modified and ideal for industrial molds with more complex designs and larger production runs. The material is durable with splinter resistance to support production safety, and it withstands chocolate production temperature changes and dishwasher cycles. Cabrellon is ready to work with customers interested in transitioning to Tritan Renew molds with support from Eastman technical experts.
"A company does not reach 60 years by standing still," Cabrellon said. "We have always grown by listening to our customers and choosing materials and partners that help us serve chocolatiers with integrity. Adding Tritan Renew to our portfolio is exactly that kind of choice. It builds on what we already trust and gives our customers a path to a more sustainable future."
"Cabrellon is a model for how a customer relationship is supposed to work," DiSantis said. "They committed to Tritan early. They helped chocolatiers like Leone 1857 discover what BPA-free copolyester molds could do, and now they are helping lead the industry with Tritan Renew. We are proud to celebrate their 60th anniversary alongside them, and we are honored that the next chapter of their story continues to be written with Eastman."
Cabrellon molds in both Tritan and Tritan Renew are available now. For more information, visit www.cabrellon.it.
*Recycled content certified by ISCC using mass balance allocation.
