A paperboard assembly adapted for food contact comprises a contacting layer made of permeable material; an external layer; and a core layer located between the contacting layer and the external layer. The core layer is adapted to impede migration of fluid therethrough, therefore a fluid contacting the contacting layer migrates at least partially through the contacting layer and is impeded from reaching the external layer by the core layer. A describes realization is a pizza box made of the paperboard assembly and a method of manufacturing the paperboard assembly.

Disclosed are methods and systems for production of fiber-based, plastic-free products are produced by a web-fed dry forming process. In some embodiments, a method of manufacturing a paper-based packaging product includes conditioning a paper web to optimize a moisture content of the paper web and to treat the paper web with at least one additive to form a conditioned paper web; and dry molding the conditioned paper web under one or both of heat and pressure to produce a plurality of finished paper-based packaging products. The at least one additive includes a stearate additive.