Berry Global Group, Inc. (NYSE: BERY) collaborated with Mars to transition its pantry jars for M&M’S®, SKITTLES® and STARBURST® brands to 100% recycled plastic packaging, exclusive of jar lids. This achievement advances the ongoing collaboration between Berry and Mars to develop packaging made with recycled content, and builds on a previous launch of the pantry jars with 15% recycled plastic in 2022.
The pantry jars are widely recyclable and come in three sizes: 60-, 81- and 87-ounces. This move to 100% recycled plastic incorporates mechanically processed recycled content and will eliminate more than 1,300 metric tons of virgin plastic annually—equivalent to the weight of about 238 African elephants.
The material used for the jars, post-consumer resin, is a packaging option made from recycled plastics collected from consumers. This option helps prevent plastic waste from ending in landfills, decreases virgin plastic consumption and reduces emissions while promoting a circular economy. For instance, once these pantry jars are empty of treats, a consumer can place the lid back on the container and put it in a recycling bin—the plastic can then be used to make new products.
The easy-grip square jars are produced at Berry’s manufacturing facility using certified food-grade mechanically recycled resin sourced from curbside collection streams. Leveraging its material science expertise and technical resources, Berry collaborated with Mars to create a solution to further their mutual sustainability goals without impacting product quality.
“As companies across the globe commit to transitioning to a circular economy, the ability to deliver products made with recycled materials at scale is crucial,” said Peter Goshorn, Vice President of Food, Beverage & Spirits for Berry Global’s Consumer Packaging North America Division. “That’s why we’re collaborating with leading brands, like Mars, to significantly increase the use of recycled content to drive responsible business growth without compromising performance or aesthetics.”
As part of its Sustainable Packaging Plan, Mars has been redesigning its packaging portfolio to reduce plastic packaging and redesign packaging to ensure it can be reusable, recyclable or compostable. Mars has been partnering with Berry since 2017 to innovate sustainable packaging.
“In the world we want tomorrow, no packaging becomes waste, but is instead reused, recycled or composted,” said Allison Lin, Global Vice President of Packaging Sustainability at Mars. “That’s why we continue to rethink our approach to packaging and collaborate with companies like Berry. Reducing our virgin plastic usage by investing in recycled content is an important step in our strategy, alongside initiatives to remove unnecessary packaging, explore reuse models and redesign our packaging for circularity. Using recycled content incentivizes increased collection systems and recycling infrastructure, which is essential for a circular economy.”
Through the collective effort of hundreds of Mars Associates, and in partnership with organisations like Berry, Mars is redesigning 12,000 packaging components, and continuing to push the boundaries of packaging innovation. Learn more about Mars’ plans for sustainable packaging.
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