Arla overhauls EU packaging to make over one billion pieces renewable and recyclable

13 May 2019 --- By the end of the year, across six countries, Arla Foods will make 600 million fresh milk cartons renewable and 560 million yogurt pots recyclable, cutting 7,330 tons of carbon in the process. The new packaging options will be available for consumers in Arla’s six main European markets – Sweden, Denmark, Finland, the Netherlands, Germany and the UK.

The food and beverage industry is under increasing societal and environmental pressure to offer more sustainable packaging. Earlier this year, Arla Oy became the first company in Finland to use renewable, wood-based bioplastics for the thin plastic film necessary in gable top, paperboard cartons for dairy products. Last year, Arla Foods Germany was the world’s first company to opt for the innovative Signature pack – the world’s first aseptic carton pack that is 100 percent linked to plant-based renewable material – from SIG.

“We have a rich back catalog of moves that have made our packaging better for the environment over the years. But no doubt, this year’s conversion of more than one billion packaging items is one of our biggest ever. Coupled with some other smaller initiatives, it means we will hit our CO2 savings target for packaging in 2019. But we have to deliver every year, so we are already developing plans for next year’s reduction,” says Arla’s Head of Europe, Peter Giørtz-Carlsen.

Dairy products in the fridges of European households are getting better for the environment.Giørtz-Carlsen further highlights how consumer sentiment around recyclable packaging is also driving the company. Over 90 percent of consumers think packaging should be designed to ease recycling and they want to be able to do so in their local recycling systems. “This has been a key driver of these initiatives,” he notes. “Currently, around 90 percent of our packaging is recyclable in one of our core markets and we want to make all our packaging possible to recycle and feasible to do so in all our core markets by 2025. We are dependent on the recycling systems in markets being fully developed and when they are, we’re preparing our packaging to be ready.”

Renewable and recyclable routes
Arla’s past initiatives to supply more sustainable packaging have included weight reductions, switching to bio-based plastics, incorporating recycled materials and replacing greenhouse gas-intensive materials. Since 2005, Arla has reduced the CO2 impact of its packaging by 25 percent, equating to 123,000 tons of CO2 being diverted from the atmosphere.

In the company’s latest move, the switch from fossil-based plastic to bio-based plastic derived from sugar cane or forest waste for the 600 million Arla milk cartons makes them 100 percent renewable. They also contribute 25 percent less carbon dioxide to the atmosphere compared to their fossil-based plastic predecessors. For the yogurt pots, the move to recyclable plastic means that these can be given a second life if recycling systems in the markets enable this.

In the UK, 7,500 tons of plastic will be taken out of milk bottles, and they will now contain up to 30 percent recycled HDPE plastic, while the clear plastic lids on crème fraiche and on-the-go pots will now contain 85 percent recycled PET, lowering climate impact by approximately 70 percent.

Making packaging more sustainable comes with many dilemmas. For example, it has to protect food, while maintaining its quality and freshness to avoid food waste. At the same time, it relies on technological developments, material availability and the systems being in place to enable a more circular flow of plastic in society, notes the company.

It is the first big move in Arla’s new sustainable packaging strategy. The company is targeting a CO2 reduction of 30 percent by 2030, initially committing to reduce emissions from its packaging by approximately 8,000 tons of CO2 every year until then. The ultimate aim is for its entire portfolio to be carbon net zero by 2050, in line with its overall climate ambition to become carbon net zero by 2050, which was announced last month.

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