packaging
At Saputo, we are committed to safeguarding the environment while continuing to grow as a world-class dairy processor. Earlier this year, we pledged to accelerate our global climate, water, and waste performance by establishing clear targets. One of the targets for 2025 is to ensure that 100% of our packaging is reusable, recyclable or compostable.
As part of our efforts, our Dairy Division (UK), in partnership with the recycling agency TerraCycle®, recently launched a recycling program for any flexible cheese film packaging from any brand. Cheese film packaging is notoriously difficult to recycle because it is comprised of several different layers. However, these layers ensure that the cheese doesn’t become contaminated before opened, remains true to its best before date and stays fresher longer, thereby reducing food waste.
The program aims to encourage people to drop off their film cheese packaging at one of the numerous public access drop-off points across the UK. Once collected, the packaging is separated by polymer type and cleaned. The material is then extruded into plastic pellets to make new recycled products such as picnic benches, plant pots or watering cans.
At Saputo, we are committed to reducing our environmental impact. This partnership offers our UK customers a simple and free recycling solution, while our innovation team continues to work towards a packaging solution that is 100% reusable, recyclable or compostable.
After all, the UK’s favourite cheese should never go to waste, and neither should its packaging.
For more information, visit https://cathedralcity.co.uk/the-cheese-packaging-recycling-programme/.
OUR AUSTRALIAN BRAND SUNGOLD WORKS TO SIGNIFICANTLY REDUCE ITS PLASTIC USE
As one of the world’s top dairy processors, being environmentally responsible means that we are constantly looking for ways to improve our environmental performance. As we continuously work towards this goal, one of the areas where we identified a clear opportunity for improvement is within the use of plastics in our product packaging.
Therefore, in 2016, we began the process of reducing our plastic use for our Sungold brand in Australia by updating the design of its milk containers. Our challenge at the time was to determine how to minimize the use of plastics in the construction, while still delivering the required strength and durability needed to delivery our products effectively to our consumers.
By redesigning our 3-litre Sungold milk product, we reduced the amount of plastics used to construct the bottle from 72 grams to 65 grams. We conducted numerous trials to ensure the new bottling would withstand the full product life cycle and at the beginning of 2018, the new 3-litre bottle went into circulation. Based on our annual production, this change represents the reduction of almost 6,000 kilograms of plastics – equal to the weight of three adult hippopotamuses - each year.
Building on this success, our aim is to incorporate similar design improvements to other product packaging. We are currently working to reduce the plastic use in our 2-litre Sungold milk product and anticipate being able to further reducing our plastic use by another 4,000 kilograms each year.
At Saputo, our goal is to pursue growth as a world-class dairy processor, while striving to minimize the environmental impacts of our activities. From the reduction of plastics, water and more, we strive to offer the best products to our customers while also creating a future we all believe in.