Category: Health

A formalized agreement commits the beer company to use PEF made from Avantium’s FDCA Flagship Plant starting in 2024.

Carlsberg Group expects that the future of the paper bottle for its iconic beer is through a barrier made of polyethylene furanoate, better known as PEF.

The company along with the renewable chemistry specialists of Avantium have agreed to take the next step in the commercialization of polyethylene furanoate (PEF) for their mutual benefit. The Group signed a conditional offtake agreement with Avantium to secure a fixed volume of the 100% plant-based, recyclable, and high-performance polymer PEF from Avantium’s FDCA Flagship Plant, which Avantium aims to start-up in 2024.https://532e0b43f2e019df1c0ab6c4f99f3e81.safeframe.googlesyndication.com/safeframe/1-0-38/html/container.html

FDCA is furandicarboxylic acid, a monomer, that’s a building block for manufacturing PEF.

Carlsberg will use the PEF resin for various packaging applications, including its “Fibre Bottle” aka paper bottle, a bio-based and fully recyclable beer bottle.

Carlsberg launched a trial of its latest Fibre Bottle, which contains an inner layer of PEF produced in Avantium’s current Pilot Plant. Carlsberg will sample the Fibre Bottle to 8,000 consumers and other selected stakeholders in eight pilot markets in Western Europe.

Avantium and Carlsberg have been partners since 2019 as the companies worked together with Paboco (Paper Bottle Company) and the Paper Bottle Community. Paboco, Avantium and Carlsberg developed the Fibre Bottle, a barrier solution, and a pioneering packaging solution for Carlsberg beer.

Image courtesy of Carlsberg Group

PEF’s superior performance qualities.

Today, the packaging consists of a wood fiber outer shell and a plant-based, recyclable PEF polymer liner. Beyond the sustainable packaging benefits, Avantium’s PEF has superior barrier properties, protecting the taste and fizziness of the beer and leading to a longer shelf life.

PEF also has higher mechanical strength than conventional plastics, enabling thinner packaging and thereby reducing the amount of material required.

In 2021, Avantium and Carlsberg signed a Joint Development Agreement to develop several PEF packaging applications, including the Fibre Bottle. With the test results of PEF in the Fibre Bottle proving successful, Carlsberg has decided to sign a conditional offtake agreement with Avantium to purchase PEF resin coming from its Flagship Plant, currently under construction in The Netherlands, for its Fibre Bottle and for the development of other beer packaging applications.

In its largest trial of the Fibre Bottle to date, today Carlsberg has revealed the latest generation design featuring the PEF lining and will sample 8,000 bottles across eight Western European markets throughout the summer. The bottles will be introduced to local consumers, customers and other stakeholders at selected festivals and flagship events, as well as targeted product sampling. Making the product accessible and gathering consumer feedback at this scale will be key to informing the next generation of design and accelerating Carlsberg’s ambition to make the Fibre Bottle a commercial reality.

Brand sees good test results.

“We are delighted to be bringing our new Fibre Bottle into the hands of consumers, allowing them to experience it for themselves,” says Stephane Munch, VP group development at Carlsberg. “However, this pilot will serve a greater purpose in testing the production, performance, and recycling of this product at scale. Identifying and producing PEF, as a competent functional barrier for beer, has been one of our greatest challenges — so getting good test results, collaborating with suppliers, and seeing the bottles being filled on the line is a great achievement!”

Tom van Aken, CEO of Avantium, says “We are pleased to expand our partnership with Carlsberg. It is a truly exciting milestone — for the very first time — consumers can experience a PEF-lined beer bottle. With business partners such as Carlsberg Group, Avantium can further scale and build the PEF value chain, meeting the growing global demand for circular and renewable material solutions. This is what the material transition is about: ensuring that consumers can get access to novel and sustainable products at scale.”

Source:

https://www.packagingdigest.com/sustainability/carlsberg-likes-pef-barrier-paper-bottle

In five months, 20,000 different Nebula Snacks wrappers have been created…and as many unique bars.

Startup Nebula Snacks is reaching for the stars by leveraging the power of packaging to attract health-conscious consumers including vegans and diabetics.

Through the magic of digital printing, every bar wrapper is different, a theme the brand doubled down on by making every bar different, too.https://90bff5c65b8e4f101d918325cbb13056.safeframe.googlesyndication.com/safeframe/1-0-38/html/container.html

The unusual name originates from the brand’s mission to “create and promote snacks made with better-for-you ingredients with ‘out-of-this-world delicious’ taste,” says David Jacobowitz, co-founder.

Nebula Snacks launched online on Thanksgiving 2021 with a commitment to natural and sustainable products — the bars are free of added sugars or animal by-product and centered on natural vegan recipes — and sustainable packaging.

The snacks’ on-package claim is “Wrappers made with Bio-Based Materials”.

That appears on the back of the wrapper. Other on-wrapper callouts: Sugar Free Planet, Plant-Based Planet, Sustainable Packaging Planet, and OU Kosher Certification

Supplied by Accuflex Packaging, the snack wrappers are made of REE34WSUP from S-One‘s ReEarth line. It’s a prelaminated structure composed of a Futamura-supplied cellophane print layer and a proprietary bio-sealant layer.

While the current films are not certified by the Biodegradable Products Institute, Nebula Snacks’ next product run will include a closely related BPI-certified compostable film from S-One, REE34MSUP, that’s replacing the “W”-grade version.

Accuflex tells us that the wrapper provides a minimum one-year shelf-life, though brands using the material are encouraged to conduct tests to determine the “Best By” date. It explains that “materials stored in a temperature and humidity-controlled environment are likely to see an extension of that one year.”

Nebula Snacks set a two-year shelf life, Jacobowitz says. “Best By dating is listed on our ecommerce shipping box rather than the wrappers because our bars are sold exclusively online at the moment.”

Digital vision and details for 20,000 unique wrappers.

For the packaging design, Jacobowitz looked to the stars.

“It was essential to inspire wonder as to what delicious treat lies below the vast expansiveness of a nebula,” he says. “We wanted to capture those vivid colors on our packaging to showcase the vibrancy of flavor that’s found inside. The focus was on pink and purple for the dark chocolate bar and light and dark blue and for the oat milk bar.”

Nebula Snacks

Nebula Snacks was unaware of the HP Mosaic tool when it approached Accuflex.

“As we explained our vision and shared our initial mockups, the Accuflex team identified the opportunity for us to truly expand our vision, much like a supernova that births a nebula,” Jacobowitz reports. This ensures that no two are the same.”

At the time of this report, that has totaled 20,000 unique wrappers.

The HP20000 digital printing system was installed in April 2020. Accuflex informs us that “our parent company has been a long-time supporter of HP Indigo and has been utilizing HP printing technology since 2003.”

HP has a suite of tools built into their workflow, HP SmartStream Designer, that makes variably printed materials relatively easy to produce. 

Two tools Accuflex uses on a regular basis are HP Mosaic and HP Collage. The supplier says that “for the Nebula Snacks project, we used HP Mosaic.”

Using an algorithm, the HP Mosaic software can generate millions of unique designs through variations of a core pattern by using scaling, transposition, and rotation.

The distinction doesn’t stop there. The top of the bars have a natural cocoa butter pattern sprayed on during manufacturing, a built-in variable such that “no two bars look the same, either,” Jacobowitz tells us.

The company launched with two chocolate flavors, one dark chocolate and one made of oat milk.

“Reminiscent of the flavors you’re used to, but better for you,” he adds.

Nebula Snacks

Nebula Snacks products are available at the company store and on Amazon in four stock-keeping units: a chocolate variety box with four dark and four oat milk bars; an 8-count oat milk box; an 8-count dark chocolate box; and a two bar sampler pack.

The commitment to sustainability extends to all four SKUs, which use either compostable or 100% recyclable materials that include

• Boxes made with 100% recycled materials and are printed on the box top using algae ink.
• Protective foam inserts in the boxes are made using cornstarch and are compostable.

“The inserts are water soluble and can be dissolved in your home sink,” Jacobowitz says.

The brand’s tagline reads “Nebula aims to not only be good for humans with our snacks, but to be good for the Earth!”

Shooting for the stars while keeping both feet planted on the ground is a good formula for success.

Source:

https://www.packagingdigest.com/digital-printing/bio-based-packaging-stars-digitally-printed-nebula

A new subscription coffee service, Bored Breakfast Club, is shaking things up with packaging that leverages the latest digital trend — NFTs.

Bored Breakfast Club is bringing the metaverse and real-life packaging together with a digital-meets-analog approach that features nonfungible token (NFT) illustrations on its coffee pouches.

An NFT is a blockchain-based digital identifier that certifies the authenticity and ownership of a digital file containing unique content, such as artwork. Bored Breakfast Club’s clever strategy marries those virtual assets to physical packaging.https://3d82627a1f5934f3c7b93f163908b318.safeframe.googlesyndication.com/safeframe/1-0-38/html/container.html

Developed by Los Angeles-based digital design studio Kley, Bored Breakfast Club is a subscription service that periodically ships a new whole-bean coffee blend, in packaging designed specifically for that blend, directly to consumers. The first blend shipped in February 2022 to 70 countries.

Although some of the blends are available to consumers paying with non-crypto payment methods, the brand’s business model favors club members — that is, Bored Breakfast Club NFT holders.

For all the product releases, consumers who own one of Bored Breakfast Club’s 5,000 NFTs qualify for a free “rewards” shipment. The brand’s NFTs were minted in January 2022, and the number of owners is currently 2,600.

Bored Breakfast Club NFTs reside on the Ethereum blockchain, and each NFT is sized for use as a banner in the owner’s chosen social network. Each NFT depicts a unique breakfast scene.

The brand’s packaging has so far featured ape-themed NFT illustrations that Kley owns. But going forward, the company plans to license NFTs from the Bored Breakfast Club community for use in its limited-time package designs.

Despite the on-pack apes, Bored Breakfast Club is not affiliated with Yuga Labs, creator of the popular Bored Ape Yacht Club NFTs.

Bored Breakfast Club’s 12-oz coffee pouches are co-branded with the brand’s own logo and that of coffee roaster Yes Plz. Printed at the top of the pouch, next to the tear line, is the phrase, “Tear to Ape In.” In NFT-speak, “aping in” means rushing into an NFT or cryptocurrency.

The pouches ship in a small corrugated carton; the tape on the carton is decorated with both logos plus whimsical illustrations of coffee cups and breakfast foods. This unboxing video on Twitter displays the packaging for “Greasy Spoon,” Blend Two, which began shipping on April 2, 2022.Image courtesy of Bored Breakfast Club

The brand is currently working on a charitable project, the #StandWithUkraine coffee blend. Bored Breakfast Club will sell this special-edition blend for $25 per pouch, with 100% of proceeds going to refugee and humanitarian efforts in and around Ukraine. The projected ship date for #StandWithUkraine is May 21, 2022.Image courtesy of Bored Breakfast Club

In this exclusive Packaging Digest interview, Brad Klemmer, founder, Kley and Bored Breakfast Club, answers questions about the brand’s packaging, NFTs, and coffee and explains the nuances of this ground-breaking marketing strategy.

Did Kley design all the Bored Breakfast Club NFTs?

Klemmer: Yes, we worked with an illustrator to create the generative scenes. There are millions of possibilities, but only 5,000 were minted.

Who’s the target consumer for Bored Breakfast Club coffee?

Klemmer: We’ve built a community of coffee lovers, both novice and pro. The entire community has been helping to educate one another on how to make a great cup and NFTs alike.

How does the NFT packaging and distribution model appeal to these consumers?

Klemmer: We’ve built an exclusive club that receives tangible rewards in the form of ongoing reward shipments. NFTs give us a tangible connection between our brand and the consumer.

We have access to data and feedback in real time, which helps us make business decisions and give our consumers exactly what they’re looking for, which helps propel our business forward in every aspect, while the consumer is being rewarded with constant and exclusive perks and benefits on an ongoing basis.

In addition to the great coffee they receive, we host a ton of community events in our Discord [community] and are continuously building out our digital content library to help educate people on coffee and how to make a great cup at home — teaching them about what they’re missing out on. And challenging their perception of what quality is. We know that with the smallest amount of effort, they can be enjoying better coffee at home than any coffee shop they may frequent, and at a fraction of the price.

The packaging is something the NFT community loves and shares a [lot] on social. We also have a program we call Blends with Friends, where we feature NFT art from other projects as a way of engaging and collaborating with other projects and communities.

Did you work with Desperate ApeWives (an NFT collection and community) on the Bored Breakfast Club project? If so, what was DAW’s role?

Klemmer: Desperate ApeWives (DAW) was one of our Blends with Friends releases. We simply partnered with them to release a one-time drop featuring a DAW on the packaging. 

How do Bored Breakfast Club NFT holders get their NFTs on your packaging?

Klemmer: Currently, the apes on the packaging are owned by Kley, but in the future we’ll be licensing them from our community for use on our ephemeral packaging. Holders will sign a simple contract and be compensated for the use of their ape/NFT.

What is “ephemeral packaging”?

Klemmer: Meaning that each release is unique and one-time. So we don’t have to worry about anyone’s intellectual property (IP) being leveraged after they may have sold the NFT to someone else. [Note: All Bored Breakfast Club blends are unique, limited-time offerings, so all the products are packaged in unique, aka ephemeral, packaging. Three products have shipped to date.]

How do you print your physical coffee packaging?

Klemmer: The bags are digitally printed.

What is your production volume for each blend that you release?

Klemmer: For each release, we roast enough to send one bag per NFT in our collection, which is 5,000.

How often do you ship a new blend?

Klemmer: Currently we’re about five to six weeks apart, but this will be dictated by the funding of the Community Coffee Wallet moving forward. [Note: Reward shipments are completely paid for by the Community Coffee Wallet.]

The Community Coffee Wallet is funded by royalties on secondary market sales — we have a royalty on Bored Breakfast Club NFTs that flows straight into the Community Coffee Wallet — but it’s also a piece of every decision we’ll make moving forward, from merch sales, coffee sales, and Blends with Friends, which are collaborations with other established NFT projects where we release exclusive blends while utilizing the IP of partner projects so they have a way of rewarding their communities with tangible goods. Who doesn’t love coffee?

Can consumers buy Bored Breakfast Club coffee online with a credit card? Or must they use their Bored Breakfast Club NFT to get a shipment of coffee?

Klemmer: Reward shipments are only available to NFT holders, but special-edition drops and Blends with Friends are available to the general public — though NFT holders do receive a discount.

Is there anything else about this packaging, the coffee, and NFTs that you’d like to add?

Klemmer: I’d encourage you to check out our Twitter feed to see holders from all over the world posting their coffee packages. 

Source:

https://www.packagingdigest.com/packaging-design/nft-coffee-pouches-are-eye-opener

Beauty brand L’Oréal Paris has committed to reducing its carbon footprint by 50% per finished product, and will contribute €10m to environmental projects whose beneficiaries are communities of women around the world.

These announcements form part of the brand’s ‘L’Oréal For the Future, Because our Planet is Worth it’ sustainability programme revealed on Thursday, which lays out a new set of ambitions for 2030. These ambitions build upon its sustainability achievements to date and are aligned with the goals of the larger L’Oréal Group.

“Now is the time to reconcile innovation, sustainability and progress, to make the shift to a circular economy and to reduce the impact of our products,” said Delphine Viguier-Hovasse, global brand president, L’Oréal Paris.

“We are not starting from scratch. Between 2005 and 2020, our factories and distribution centres have already reduced CO2 emissions by 82%, water consumption by 44%, and waste generation by 35%. There is still much work to be done but we will remain strong in our resolve to make a difference and play our part in this race against climate change.”

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Optimising packaging

Reducing the weight of products: To help conserve natural resources and reduce the carbon footprint of products, the brand is working to reduce the weight of packaging. For example, it lowered the weight of the aluminium used in the L’Oréal Paris Men Expert Carbon Protect Aerosol by -5.1 grams per bottle, representing 135 tonnes of aluminium saved annually.

Also, by reducing the weight of the Revitalift jar, L’Oréal Paris reduced the use of glass for this product by 11 grams per jar, saving 434 tonnes of glass annually. Furthermore, the weight of boxes and instructions for hair colour ranges have been reduced, representing an important saving of paper every year.

By 2030, the brand will reduce by 20% in intensity the quantity of packaging. This economy of materials represents a significate optimisation of weight and space in transport, contributing to reduce carbon emissions due to transportation.

Using 100% recycled plastic: L’Oréal Paris is working on accelerating the shift to a circular economy, where materials are kept in use for as long as possible, by optimising packaging recyclability, striving to conserve resources and prevent plastic pollution. This includes using more recycled content in packaging, with the objective of reaching 100% recycled or biobased plastic by 2030 (or 0 virgin plastic).

Embodying change: Since 2020, the L’Oréal Paris haircare range, Elvive, has undertaken a major transformation by targeting 100% recycled PET (polyethylene terephthalate) for shampoo and conditioner bottles in Europe.

Engaging consumers: To seek alternatives to single-use packaging and propose refill or reuse systems while engaging consumers, L’Oréal Paris will join Loop initiative and take part in a project to trial new types of durable packaging. The new shampoo and conditioner packaging will be made of aluminum, and sold with a deposit, on the retailer’s website. After using the products, consumers will be able to return the packaging to the retailer that will collect and return the packaging to L’Oréal Paris for cleaning and refining.

Improving formulas

To reduce its environmental impact, the brand is improving the biodegradability of its formulas and reducing its water footprint. Among the products launched in 2019, Elvive Full Resist Power Mask and Men Expert Shaving Barber Club Crème de Rasage have levels of biodegradability exceeding 94% (97% and 94% respectively).

Furthermore, to address a more conscious use of water during use phase (which represents 50% of the CO2 footprint of the brand, linked with heating the water for rinsing products) and help reduce the time needed in the shower, the brand also develops formulas that need less water to be rinsed (e.g. More than Shampoo), as well as new beauty routines that require fewer rinsing steps (two-in-one products or non-rinse haircare treatments such as Dream Lengths Management).

Producing sustainably

L’Oréal Paris factories continue their ongoing efforts to reduce carbon emissions, water consumption and waste generation. Between 2005 and 2020, L’Oréal Paris factories and distribution centres have reduced CO2 emissions by 82%, water consumption by 44%, and waste generation by 35%.

Today, L’Oréal Paris products are made in 26 factories around the world. Eleven of them are already carbon neutral (using 100% renewable energy, without offsetting) and the rest will reach this goal in 2025.

Investment in women empowerment

As women are the primary victims of climate change, L’Oréal Paris will invest €10m in a series of six carbon projects whose beneficiaries are communities of women around the world. Along with financial support, L’Oréal Paris will also develop specific programmes that encourage a greater inclusion of women in leadership of these projects.

In Honduras for example, where local indigenous communities protect and restore mangroves, the brand will support a project managed by a cooperative of women who will receive support and education.

2025 goals:

• 100% of the brand’s factories will be carbon neutral
• 50% of plastic will be recycled plastic, among which 100% recycled PET
• 100% of L’Oréal Paris’ plastic packaging will be recyclable, reusable or compostable
• €10m invested in environmental projects
• 88,515 tonnes of residual carbon emissions by 2025
• 54K hectares protected

2030 goals:

• 100% of all L’Oréal Paris products will be eco-designed
• 100% of the plastic will come from recycled or biobased materials
• L’Oréal Paris will reduce the quantity of packaging used for its products by 20% in intensity
• 100% of L’Oréal Paris’ renewable and mineral raw materials will be sustainably sourced
• 95% of the brand’s ingredients will be of renewable origin, derived from abundant minerals or circular processes
• 50% less CO2 emissions per product, compared to 2016
• 100% of L’Oréal Paris’ factories will be “waterloop factories”
• Carbon emissions intensity linked to transport of products will be reduced by 50% for each product

Source:

https://www.bizcommunity.com/Article/1/784/215187.html#

PepsiCo is committed to changing the way packaging is made, used, and disposed across its food system. This pledge sees PepsiCo Sub-Saharan Africa become the first market within PepsiCo’s Africa, Middle East, and South Asia (Amesa) sector to reduce its reliance on virgin plastics and incorporate 20% recycled PET (rPET) in its products.

Increasing the use of materials such as rPET, is part of the ‘Positive Value Chain’ pillar of PepsiCo’s recently announced PepsiCo Positive agenda, which the food and beverage giant says places sustainability at the core of how the company operates.

Driving a circular economy for packaging

PepsiCo has pledged to changing the way packaging is made, used and disposed of across its food system.

“The reduction in the use of virgin plastic packaging, demonstrates the company’s commitment to driving towards a circular economy for packaging and reducing plastic waste,” says Bronwyn Patten, senior franchise director: WECA, PepsiCo SSA. “This means we must recycle and reuse the packaging material that we put into the world. This not only limits waste, but also reduces the carbon footprint of the packaging that we use.”

Pieter Spies, CEO of The Beverage Company, comments, “We are honoured to be the Pepsi bottler of choice in South Africa and to be a part of their aggressive pursuit of creating sustainable packaging solutions. As The Beverage Company we are committed to delivering premium products that promote sustainability while protecting our natural resources. Our research and development strategies are focused on leveraging the most innovative technology available and designing packaging that is of the lightest possible weight.”

He adds, “We have been a contributing member of Petco – the PET Recycling Company – for many years and have participated in driving the Reduce, Re-use, Recycle behaviour among customers by implementing, measuring and expanding on the management of waste to landfill. We believe that it is important to drive the circular economy and are engaging with industry players to see how we can bring multi-disciplined parties together to collaborate to further increase the collection of post-consumer plastics before going to dump sites.”

Reinventing packaging

While recycling helps to reduce emissions and plastic waste overall, PepsiCo says wants to have a bigger impact on the environment. Therefore, the company’s priority has been to tackle one of the key contributors to greenhouse gases by reducing and reinventing its packaging.

As part of the newly introduced Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) regulations, the requirement for the beverage packaging industry is inclusion of 10% recycled content in the first year (2022) and leading up to 20% inclusion by year five.

Patten adds, “At PepsiCo, we aspire to a world where packaging never becomes waste. The commitment goes beyond Pepsi brands and the switch to 20% rPET will take place in phases with the 2-litre soft-drinks portfolio already completed. The balance of the product portfolio will be completed during Q1 of 2022.”

The company’s brands, across its food and beverage portfolio, are accelerating their efforts to realise PepsiCo’s sustainable packaging vision and leveraging their influence to educate consumers on recycling and the planetary impacts of their choices. This feeds into the company’s ‘Net Zero Emissions commitment by 2040’ and its sustainable packaging goals, PepsiCo says.

Source:

https://www.bizcommunity.africa/Article/410/162/223752.html#

As environmental awareness increases, both globally and locally, the amount of waste generated in South Africa is attracting more concern. Significant volumes of waste are still being diverted to landfill sites, which reflects a continued and dangerous “take-make-dispose” relationship with consumer products.

In response to both consumer and legislative pressures, some of South Africa’s largest retailers and brands are now putting a greater emphasis on the recyclability of their packaging.

The World Wildlife Fund South Africa’s plastics report (Plastics: Facts and Futures), published in November 2020, showed that out of the major municipalities, only eThekwini Metropolitan Municipality in KwaZulu-Natal and the City of Ekurhuleni Metropolitan Municipality in Gauteng have significant landfill space left. There is therefore an urgent need to divert plastic and packaging waste and other end-of-life materials away from landfill sites.

Legislative moves

The Plastic Carrier Bags and Plastic Flat Bags Regulations published under the Environmental Conservation Act, 1989 (Plastic Bag Regulations) are premised on the popular slogan: “Reduce, Reuse, Recycle”. Read with the plastic bag levy introduced in 2004 under the Customs and Excise Act, 1964, an indirect tax has been imposed on the movement, manufacture, or consumption of plastic bags. Retailers pass this tax onto consumers by charging for every sale of a plastic bag.

The Plastic Bag Regulations also impose certain “compulsory specifications” on plastic bags (such as a minimum thickness of 24 microns), to make plastic bags more environmentally friendly and reusable. Under the most recent amendments to the Plastic Bag Regulations, there is now a deadline that all plastic bags should contain designated amounts of “post-consumer recyclate” at certain intervals, until they ultimately contain 100% post-consumer recyclate content by 1 January 2027 (subject to permissible exceptions).

But our legislators have acknowledged that we need to do more in encouraging circular economy thinking and practices. In May 2021, the Extended Producer Responsibility Regulations published under the National Environmental Management: Waste Act, 2008 took effect, marking a new waste management policy approach that is now regulated by law.

Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) is founded on product stewardship and the “polluter-pays principle”, to encourage circular economy practices (such as sustainable packaging design), increase recycling rates and divert waste from our landfills. The EPR Regulations prescribe mandatory EPR measures which designated producers of identified products in (among others) the paper, packaging and single-use product sector must comply with.

These include upstream obligations (i.e., regulating the design, production, and composition of products to encourage avoiding, reducing, and reusing waste), as well as downstream obligations (i.e., regulating the waste implications associated with products after their consumption, such as recovery, recycling, and disposal).

In support of the EPR Regulations and their requirements, the Department of Forestry, Fisheries, and the Environment (DFFE) published a Draft Packaging Guideline: Recyclability by Design for Packaging and Paper in South Africa (Draft Packaging Guideline) on 6 October 2021. Its main purpose is to reduce the volume of packaging in landfill sites by improving product design, increasing the quality of production practices, and promoting waste prevention.

The Draft Packaging Guideline focuses on the design of packaging to facilitate recycling and represents a small but important aid for the journey to sustainable production and consumption, specifically seeking to maximise the value of recyclate (where the specification of recycled materials in the design of new products supports the recovery of material).

Ethical marketing

Large retailers such as Mr Price, Woolworths, Shoprite and Spar and large brands such as Estee Lauder and Coca-Cola have, for several years, been aggressively pursuing sustainable packaging goals by developing, and increasingly using, environmentally friendly and sustainable packaging. This enhances the appeal of their products to many shoppers.

However, there are certain legal and ethical obligations relating to the advertising of sustainable packaging.

South Africa’s consumer protection laws give consumers the right to fair and honest dealing, disclosure of information and fair and responsible marketing which is not false, deceptive, or misleading regarding the services and product provided.

There is also a Code of Advertising, which requires brands and retailers to ensure that, among other things, all advertisements are legal, decent, honest, and truthful and prepared with a sense of responsibility to the consumer.

Brands and retailers should ensure that advertisements are not framed to abuse the trust of the consumer or exploit their lack of experience, knowledge, or credulity. They must ensure that advertisements do not contain any statement or visual presentation which, directly or by implication, omission, ambiguity, inaccuracy, exaggerated claim or otherwise, is likely to mislead the consumer.

Beyond these regulatory mechanisms, the marked rise of Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) considerations and impacts which organisations are expected to understand, internalise and disclose against has brought with it a warning against ‘greenwashing’ – the phenomenon of conveying a false impression or providing misleading information about how a company’s products are more environmentally sound.

Brand owners and product labels need to be wary of false advertising, as an increased number of claims and litigation in the ESG space have been premised on greenwashing attempts by big corporates and retailers.

Where will this lead?

These measures all demonstrate the importance being placed on sustainable packaging and providing accountability mechanisms to root out false advertising in various industries. Failure to adopt and abide by these mechanisms will see a significant increase in ESG-related litigation based on misrepresentation and sustainability falsehoods in product labelling and packaging design.

It is becoming increasingly clear that the sustainability and competitiveness of brands is linked to their ability to give effect to the concept of “recyclability”, namely that it must become both technically and economically feasible to recycle product packaging. This will require brands to support and implement circular economy practices and initiatives in packaging design.

With the legislative mechanisms now in place, we expect a variety of mechanisms, solutions and initiatives being implemented throughout the packaging value chain.

Manufacturers, converters, importers and brand owners of certain types of packaging (such as glass, metal, paper packaging and single-use plastic) will, following their registration with the DFFE under the EPR Regulations, now be required to budget for the implementation of upstream and downstream measures to improve the recyclability of their products at the end of their life – whether on their own or by paying Producer Responsibility Organisations (registered non-profit companies in the recovery and recycling space) to do so on their behalf.

We understand that industry is also working on universal and uniform labelling requirements, which are expected to be enforced in the near future.

The informal waste sector will play a crucial part in the mandated EPR schemes that will be implemented in the packaging sector, as will innovative technologies to track packaging materials, their use, and their composition throughout their lifecycle.

Due to climate change, recyclability should be at the forefront of product design and development and brands ought to remember that they have an ethical and legal duty to contribute to the South African consumer sector’s environmentally sustainable future.

Source:

https://www.bizcommunity.com/Article/196/178/223010.html

PepsiCo is committed to changing the way packaging is made, used, and disposed across its food system. This pledge sees PepsiCo Sub-Saharan Africa become the first market within PepsiCo’s Africa, Middle East, and South Asia (Amesa) sector to reduce its reliance on virgin plastics and incorporate 20% recycled PET (rPET) in its products.

Increasing the use of materials such as rPET, is part of the ‘Positive Value Chain’ pillar of PepsiCo’s recently announced PepsiCo Positive agenda, which the food and beverage giant says places sustainability at the core of how the company operates.

Driving a circular economy for packaging

PepsiCo has pledged to changing the way packaging is made, used and disposed of across its food system.

“The reduction in the use of virgin plastic packaging, demonstrates the company’s commitment to driving towards a circular economy for packaging and reducing plastic waste,” says Bronwyn Patten, senior franchise director: WECA, PepsiCo SSA. “This means we must recycle and reuse the packaging material that we put into the world. This not only limits waste, but also reduces the carbon footprint of the packaging that we use.”

Pieter Spies, CEO of The Beverage Company, comments, “We are honoured to be the Pepsi bottler of choice in South Africa and to be a part of their aggressive pursuit of creating sustainable packaging solutions. As The Beverage Company we are committed to delivering premium products that promote sustainability while protecting our natural resources. Our research and development strategies are focused on leveraging the most innovative technology available and designing packaging that is of the lightest possible weight.”

He adds, “We have been a contributing member of Petco – the PET Recycling Company – for many years and have participated in driving the Reduce, Re-use, Recycle behaviour among customers by implementing, measuring and expanding on the management of waste to landfill. We believe that it is important to drive the circular economy and are engaging with industry players to see how we can bring multi-disciplined parties together to collaborate to further increase the collection of post-consumer plastics before going to dump sites.”

Reinventing packaging

While recycling helps to reduce emissions and plastic waste overall, PepsiCo says wants to have a bigger impact on the environment. Therefore, the company’s priority has been to tackle one of the key contributors to greenhouse gases by reducing and reinventing its packaging.

As part of the newly introduced Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) regulations, the requirement for the beverage packaging industry is inclusion of 10% recycled content in the first year (2022) and leading up to 20% inclusion by year five.

Patten adds, “At PepsiCo, we aspire to a world where packaging never becomes waste. The commitment goes beyond Pepsi brands and the switch to 20% rPET will take place in phases with the 2-litre soft-drinks portfolio already completed. The balance of the product portfolio will be completed during Q1 of 2022.”

The company’s brands, across its food and beverage portfolio, are accelerating their efforts to realise PepsiCo’s sustainable packaging vision and leveraging their influence to educate consumers on recycling and the planetary impacts of their choices. This feeds into the company’s ‘Net Zero Emissions commitment by 2040’ and its sustainable packaging goals, PepsiCo says.

Source:

https://www.bizcommunity.africa/Article/410/162/223752.html

Aldi announces that its own-brand rice will be available in fully recyclable, monomaterial PE packaging developed by Coveris, with the rollout expected across January and February 2022.

The new packaging is a result of a two year partnership between Coveris and Veetee, one of the UK’s largest rice suppliers, to launch the packaging for Aldi’s own-brand Worldwide Foods 1kg basmati rice and 1kg brown rice SKUs.

According to the companies, the rice was previously packed in a non-recyclable, OPP and PE mixed laminate. The SKUs will now be packaged in Coveris’ MonoFlexE monomaterial PE to PE laminate solution, which it says is fully recyclable and will reportedly enable around 30 tonnes of film to enter the soft plastic recycling stream annually.

Using Coveris’ extrusion and film science capabilities, MonoFlexE for rice is apparently packed with the same block bottom, FFS format and offers like-for-like shelf-life properties and packing speeds as the former mixed laminate substrate. Coveris adds that MonoFlexE rice packaging is also available with up to nine colour HD flexo print and gloss or matte varnish for on-shelf appeal.

In addition, the packaging artwork has been updated for the launch and will now feature the retailer’s recycling logo on the front, with OPRL (On-Pack Recycling Label) recycling guidance on the back.

Mark Robinson, flexibles technical director at Coveris UK, says: “Aligned with Coveris’ sustainability strategy NO WASTE, we continue to use film science technology to advance our recyclable flexible films into new categories.

“The launch of MonoFlexE for Aldi rice following a successful, collaborative project with Veetee is a breakthrough for this market and we can be very proud to work with Aldi and Veetee to innovate packaging for improved recycling.”

Richard Gorman, plastics and packaging director at Aldi UK, comments: “We are always open to innovative solutions to reducing plastic waste, so we are pleased to work with Coveris and Veetee to launch our own-brand rice in fully recyclable packaging, which marks a further step towards achieving our plastic and packaging goals.”

Aldi is aiming for 100% of its own-brand packaging to be reusable, recyclable, or compostable by the end of 2022. The retailer has already removed plastic straws from its own-label drinks cartons, as well as trialled the removal of plastic shrink-wrap from its baked bean multipacks deals and introducing a recyclable inner bag for its cereal packaging. At its Ulverston store in Cumbria, UK, Aldi is also offering packaging-free, loose buy options for staples including rice, which could lead to the development of refillable options in other stores if successful.

Coveris’ MonoFlexE packaging for Aldi rice launched in January 2022 for half of the two SKUs, with the remaining 50% of its basmati and brown rice items to switch throughout January and February.

Source:

Using Coveris’ extrusion and film science capabilities, MonoFlexE for rice is apparently packed with the same block bottom, FFS format and offers like-for-like shelf-life properties and packing speeds as the former mixed laminate substrate. Coveris adds that MonoFlexE rice packaging is also available with up to nine colour HD flexo print and gloss or matte varnish for on-shelf appeal.

In addition, the packaging artwork has been updated for the launch and will now feature the retailer’s recycling logo on the front, with OPRL (On-Pack Recycling Label) recycling guidance on the back.

Mark Robinson, flexibles technical director at Coveris UK, says: “Aligned with Coveris’ sustainability strategy NO WASTE, we continue to use film science technology to advance our recyclable flexible films into new categories.

“The launch of MonoFlexE for Aldi rice following a successful, collaborative project with Veetee is a breakthrough for this market and we can be very proud to work with Aldi and Veetee to innovate packaging for improved recycling.”

Richard Gorman, plastics and packaging director at Aldi UK, comments: “We are always open to innovative solutions to reducing plastic waste, so we are pleased to work with Coveris and Veetee to launch our own-brand rice in fully recyclable packaging, which marks a further step towards achieving our plastic and packaging goals.”

Aldi is aiming for 100% of its own-brand packaging to be reusable, recyclable, or compostable by the end of 2022. The retailer has already removed plastic straws from its own-label drinks cartons, as well as trialled the removal of plastic shrink-wrap from its baked bean multipacks deals and introducing a recyclable inner bag for its cereal packaging. At its Ulverston store in Cumbria, UK, Aldi is also offering packaging-free, loose buy options for staples including rice, which could lead to the development of refillable options in other stores if successful.

Source:

https://packagingeurope.com/news/coveris-develops-recyclable-rice-packaging-for-aldi/7802.article