Nestlé has invested US$30 million in recyclable and reusable packaging alternatives across its company portfolio. In three simultaneous sustainability moves, the company will increase its food-grade recycled plastics in the US, while introducing a refillable system for pet food in Chile and first-of-its-kind recyclable paper packaging for Maggi bouillon cubes in France.

The move aligns with the FMCG giant’s ambitions to make 100 percent of its packaging recyclable or reusable and to reduce its use of virgin plastics by one-third by 2025. The company further states that the pandemic has not made a dent on its commitment to sustainable packaging.

“We have made strides in our transformative journey toward a waste-free future, but we know that we have more work to do,” says Véronique Cremades-Mathis, Global Head of Sustainable Packaging, Nestlé. 

A three-pronged approach
Nestlé’s US$30 million investment is directed toward the Closed Loop Leadership Fund, a private equity fund dedicated to the shift from virgin plastics to food-grade recycled plastics in the US. The Fund aims to increase recycling rates by an additional 25 percentage points in areas serviced by portfolio companies, Nestlé states.

This investment is the first to utilize Nestlé’s packaging venture fund established earlier this year, which is part of the company’s overall investment of up to CHF2 billion (US$2.08 billion).

In Chile, Nestlé Purina, Nestlé pet care arm, now offers a new shopping experience powered by a mobile app and electric tricycles. Pet owners can selec one of two Purina Dog Chow products as well as the time and day for delivery. One of three electric tricycles circulating in eight communes of Santiago then delivers the pet food to the consumer’s front door. The product is dispensed into a reusable and refillable container, widely acknowledged as a major contributor to a circular economy.

Across the Atlantic, the paper used for the new French Maggi bouillon wrapper is from environmentally conscious sources – pulp and paper mills certified by the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) and The Program for the Endorsement of Forest Certification (PEFC). 

“The main challenge our team faced was the creation of a foldable, sealable material that is robust enough to provide a sufficient barrier to keep the product fresh and safe, while also being readily recyclable,” says Torsten Pohl, Head of Nestlé’s Product Technology Center for Food in Singen, Germany.

Ahead of the launch, the team also worked on refurbishing and upgrading existing packaging machines to allow the new paper wrapping to run on them.