Nestlé has announced it is to invest £1.59bn into sustainable packaging solutions.
The food and drink company will begin a move away from virgin plastics to food-grade recycled plastics and has committed £1.59bn to accelerate the development of innovative sustainable packaging solutions.
In 2018, Nestlé vowed to make 100% of its packaging recyclable by 2025. The company will now reduce its use of virgin plastics by one third in the same period while working with others to help clean up plastic waste from oceans, lakes and rivers.
£1.19bn will be used to pay a premium for up to 2 million metric tons of food-grade recycled plastics between now and 2025. Nestlé will also launch a CHF 250 million sustainable packaging venture fund to invest in start-up companies that focuses on packaging innovation, including new materials, refill systems and recycling solutions.
“We are taking bold steps to create a wider market for food-grade recycled plastics and boost innovation in the packaging industry.”
Mark Schneider, CEO of Nestlé, said: “No plastic should end up in landfill or as litter. Making recycled plastics safe for food is an enormous challenge for our industry. That is why in addition to minimising plastics use and collecting waste, we want to close the loop and make more plastics infinitely recyclable. We are taking bold steps to create a wider market for food-grade recycled plastics and boost innovation in the packaging industry. We welcome others to join us on this journey.”
Andrew Morlet, CEO of the Ellen MacArthur Foundation, commented: “We are pleased to see Nestlé commit a CHF 2 billion investment toward creating a circular economy for plastics, alongside a reduction of its use of virgin plastic in packaging by one third by 2025. By eliminating the plastics we don’t need, innovating in areas like reuse models and new materials, and circulating the plastics we do need – also in more challenging food grade applications — we can create an economy where plastic never becomes waste. Achieving the commitments announced today will significantly contribute towards realizing this vision.”
