Kraft Heinz pledges “critical” 20% cut to virgin plastic before 2030

01 Aug 2023 --- Kraft Heinz has announced a new goal to reduce the use of virgin plastic throughout its global packaging portfolio by 20% by 2030. The company says establishing this target is a “critical step” in decreasing its use of fossil fuels and finding more environmentally sustainable product packaging options.

The change is estimated to reduce the use of approximately 100 million pounds (45 million kg) of virgin plastic compared to the 2021 baseline – the equivalent of nearly five Eiffel Towers in weight.

“To achieve our ESG goals, including to reach net-zero GHG emissions, we can’t continue to do things as we have in the past,” says Rashida La Lande, executive vice president, global general counsel, and chief sustainability and corporate affairs officer at Kraft Heinz.

“We are investing in innovative technologies and partnerships that are critical to helping us redesign packaging, eliminate unnecessary plastic, increase our use of recycled content and influence the adoption of reuse models. This is one more way we’re renovating our product portfolio to not only offer more sustainable options but to deliver on our consumer expectations.”

Currently, Kraft Heinz is working to reduce its footprint by a number of targets, including making its packaging 100% recyclable, reusable or compostable by 2025 and aiming to reach net-zero GHG emissions by 2050 while halving emissions by 2030.

Kraft Heinz is aiming for net-zero emissions by 2050.Kraft Heinz circular initiatives
Kraft Heinz is working to increase its use of recycled content in packaging throughout the US, Canada and the UK. The company aims to replace 15% of its US PET rigid plastic packaging portfolio with post-consumer recycled content by 2025.

Some notable examples of recent product plans include:

• Kraft Real Mayo and Miracle Whip will transition packaging to 100% recycled content in the US beginning in 2024 to eliminate approximately 14 million pounds (6.3 million kg) of virgin plastic.
• Heinz moved to 30% recycled content in most of its bottles in Brazil, the UK and Europe.
• Heinz partnered with specialists in the UK to create recyclable Heinz Beans Snap Pots from soft plastics that were returned to Tesco by consumers. The recyclable pots are food-safe and made with 39% recycled plastic.

Kraft Heinz also identifies packaging solutions that use less plastic, such as eliminating unnecessary plastic components.

• Shake ‘n Bake removed its plastic “shaker” bag from its signature packaging last year to eliminate 900,000 pounds (408,000 kg) of plastic waste annually.
• Heinz launched a multipack paperboard sleeve to replace plastic shrink-wrap in the UK, eliminating more than 1 million pounds (450,000 kg) of plastic in 2022.

Material alternatives, monomaterial solutions
Kraft Heinz is also exploring the use of alternative materials like fiber-based packaging.

The company announced a pilot with Pulpex in 2022 to develop a paper-based, renewable and recyclable bottle made from 100% wood pulp. Heinz is testing the prototype to assess performance before bringing the bottle to the market.

Recently, Heinz Tomato Ketchup’s squeeze bottle became fully recyclable after adding a monomaterial cap. Heinz says it has been developing the cap solution for years. The cap’s past iteration used a flexible valve made from silicone which, while suitable for delivering the right amount of ketchup, was typically a challenge to recycle.

Edited by Louis Gore-Langton

This feature is provided by Food Ingredients First’s sister website, Packaging Insights.

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