Responsible sourcing: Tetra Pak provides food and drink packaging with fully traceable plant-based polymers

22 Nov 2019 --- In cooperation with its supplier Braskem, Tetra Pak has become the first company in the food and beverage industry to responsibly source plant-based polymers using the Bonsucro standards for sustainable sugarcane. This move is a bid to address rising concerns for the environment and reinforces Tetra Pak’s commitment to driving ethical and responsible business practices across global supply chains, while lowering the carbon footprint of its packaging.

“Our plant-based polymers are fully traceable to their sugarcane origin. We see plant-based materials as playing a key role in achieving a low-carbon circular economy. In the future, all polymers we use will either be made from plant-based materials or from post-consumption recycled food grades,” says Mario Abreu, Vice President, Sustainability, at Tetra Pak.

There are two Bonsucro Production Standards:

• Production Standard: Can be used by all sugarcane mills and farms to demonstrate sustainable production, regardless of size.
• Production Standard for Smallholder Farmers: Smallholder farming groups (association or supplying to a mill) may use the Smallholder Standard to demonstrate sustainable production in place of the Bonsucro Production Standard mentioned above. The farmers in the group must meet the definition of smallholder farmers (less than 25 hectares, with additional guidance and exceptions).

The company maintains that 91 percent of today’s consumers actively seek environmental logos when shopping. Bonsucro Chain of Custody Certification can be used to communicate credible information to consumers, thereby helping customers differentiate their products, Abreu affirms.

The shift to plant-based polymers is part of Tetra Pak’s recently launched Planet Positive initiative, which urges industry stakeholders to take a broader view of sustainability, evolving the concept of circular economy to a low-carbon circular economy. The company advocates going beyond recycling and reusing to include the carbon impact of raw materials and manufacturing. Moreover, it has also taken note of how consumer perceptions of the interaction between environment and health are becoming increasingly strong, thus tapping into consumer demand for packaging that is not just safe for the environment, but also safe for human health. 

Plant-based materials, such as paper and polymers, significantly reduce greenhouse gas emissions, which can help support economic growth that is decoupled from fossil, finite sources, says the company. Tetra Pak produces the closures on its drink cartons from plant-based polymers, such as sugarcane. Plant-based polymer supplier Braskem has now reached 100 percent Bonsucro-certified volumes of sugarcane-derived bioethanol for Tetra Pak’s plant-based solutions, establishing full supply chain transparency.

“We have been working with Tetra Pak for more than ten years and Bonsucro Chain of Custody reinforces the Responsible Ethanol Sourcing Program from Braskem. This is with the assurance and traceability of the entire sugarcane value chain, all the way back to the growers and mills,” says Gustavo Sergi, Renewable Business Unit Leader at Braskem.

Since 2007, Tetra Pak has delivered more than 500 billion Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) labeled packages, marking a milestone in the company’s ambition to promote responsible sourcing and contributing to a low-carbon circular economy. 

Edited by Anni Schleicher