Packaging
EARTHBOUND FARM ANNOUNCES INDUSTRY-FIRST SWITCH TO 100 PERCENT PCR PET
Friday 10. July 2009 - Organic Produce Leader Believes Packaging is the Next Frontier in Tangible Environmental Benefit
Befitting its history of environmental stewardship, Earthbound Farm today announced a fresh-cut salad industry first: All of its plastic clamshell packages are now being made from 100 percent post-consumer recycled polyethylene terephthalate (PCR PET). Americas largest grower of organic produce, Earthbound Farm is celebrating its 25th anniversary with this significant move, emphasizing its commitment to protecting the environment.
Virgin PET is made primarily from natural gas feedstock, whereas PCR PET is made from previously used plastic products such as soda or water bottles that would otherwise end up in landfills. Many food and nonfood packages are made from PET because it is light, shatter resistant, safe and recyclable. PCR PET materials use significantly less energy and water to produce than virgin plastic and result in lower greenhouse gas emissions and solid waste, according to the Sustainable Packaging Coalition.
Based on Earthbound Farms annual usage of rigid PET plastic in 2008, the companys conversion to 100 percent PCR PET for clamshell packaging will conserve 424,000 million BTUs and 68,307 gallons of water, as well as eliminate 16,191 tons of carbon dioxide and divert 1.3 million pounds of solid waste from landfills.
“We started farming organically because we were concerned about the personal and environmental health effects of farming with chemicals”, said Myra Goodman, co-founder and executive vice president of Earthbound Farm. “Organic farming has really positive effects, but we know we have to do more. More ecological packaging is an important next step; one we hope others will soon follow. “
To both celebrate its 25th anniversary and increase awareness of the ecological benefits of PCR packaging, Earthbound Farm is launching a redesigned label on its salad greens packages, calling out the post-consumer content of the packaging. The company is also launching a web-based contest seeking quotes from children for the inside of its clamshell salad labels. Kids will be encouraged to submit quotes thanking those who purchase organic for helping protect the future. In return, the company will invest in the childrens future: the authors of those quotes chosen to be printed on Earthbound Farm salad labels will be awarded a $500 U.S. savings bond and a $500 donation will be made in their name to an environmental charity of their choice.
“Our decision to switch to post-consumer recycled packaging is one of many steps we have taken on our long journey of challenging the industrial status quo,” said Chad Smith, manager of Earthbound Farms sustainability initiatives. “There are many opportunities to create a larger U.S. market for PCR materials, which is essential to reducing what were putting in landfills. We hope that other companies will see the value in adopting packaging solutions with PCR content and that consumers will make the decision to seek out PCR packaging when shopping. Working in tandem these steps will create the manufacturing demand needed for post consumer recycled materials,” he said.
Californias Rigid Plastics Packaging Container Law requires the use of 25 percent of PCR content in all rigid plastic packaging of non-food products.1 While PET is the most recycled plastic, recycling statistics demonstrate how much better Americans could be doing with recycling their valuable wastes. According the Environmental Protection Agency, there was nearly six billion pounds of PET packaging waste generated in 2007 (the most recent year for these stats), and only 23% was recycled into new products, leaving over 4.5 billion pounds of PET to languish in landfills.2 If PCR PET were more in demand for packaging and other uses, much more would be diverted from landfills and into other uses.
“We think a lot about where packaging goes after its useful life,” said Anne Johnson, director at the Sustainable Packaging Coalition, a project of the non-profit organization GreenBlue. “Were interested in developing closed loops for these materials. What is needed is a recycling infrastructure that can handle PET in all its forms so that those materials can be collected and used again and again. Earthbound Farms PCR PET initiative is a perfect example of how to get the ball rolling in the right direction. We hope to see more companies make that commitment, creating a market for these materials which is what it will take to keep PET out of landfills and in the recycling stream,” Johnson said.
Earthbound Farm is sourcing its PCR PET clamshells from Packaging Plus (http://www.packagingplusllc.com/), which has nine locations in the U.S., Europe and Asia.