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Two Major Household Products Now Available in Reusable Packaging
TerraCycle
pepsico
Nestle
Unilever
Include USA
Mondelez International
Procter & Gamble
Walgreens
Loop
Mars Petcare
The Body Shop
Coca-Cola European Partners
Kroger
Detergent brands Cascade and Tide have joined circular shopping system Loop, with customers in the U.S. now able to buy the products in reusable packaging. Recycling specialists TerraCycle run the program, which enables customers to buy everyday products in durable packaging that can be cleaned, collected, refilled and reused.
The Rise Of The Circular Economy & What It Means For Your Home
Earlier this year, recycling company TerraCycle made a splash with its new Loop program—which promises to deliver common household items from companies like Unilever, Procter & Gamble Company, Coca-Cola, and Haagen-Dazs in reusable packaging. It's a subscription program that delivers items to participating households and picks up the empties (to be cleaned and reused) once they're done.
Cascade and Tide join Loop packaging re-use scheme
TerraCycle
pepsico
Nestle
Unilever
Include USA
Mondelez International
Procter & Gamble
Walgreens
Loop
Mars Petcare
The Body Shop
Coca-Cola European Partners
Kroger
The scheme, run by recycling specialists TerraCycle, enables customers to buy everyday products in durable packaging that can be cleaned, collected, refilled, and reused.
Cascade and Tide are both owned by Procter & Gamble, which is one of the major consumer goods companies backing Loop alongside Nestle, PepsiCo, Unilever, Mars Petcare, The Body Shop, Coca-Cola European Partners, and Mondelēz International.
Unilever’s plan to stop massive plastic pollution from destroying the oceans
TerraCycle
pepsico
coca cola
Nestle
Unilever
Include USA
UPS
Procter & Gamble
Suez
Carrefour
Loop
Unilever plastic packaging used in products like shampoo and conditioner bottles contributes to ocean pollution.
On any given day, 2.5 billion people use Unilever products that span 400 brands. That success has created a huge target on the company’s back as the sustainability movement gains more traction with consumers shunning plastic pollution.
Sajjad Hussain | AFP | Getty Images
From the farthest reaches of the Arctic to the deepest depths of the ocean, plastic pollution really is everywhere. Plastic pollution in the ocean is a particularly big problem: an estimated 100 million ocean animals are killed each year because of plastic in the ocean, and we currently have no reliable way to extract those plastics. But plastic is also a huge part of our everyday lives, in often invisible ways. Now, one of the world’s biggest plastic polluters is racing to reinvent its business–and the way we think about this ubiquitous material–one package at a time. The sea change is top priority for Unilever to ensure customers remain loyal to the 90-year-old global brand.
On any given day, 2.5 billion people use Unilever products that span 400 brands to feel good, look good and get more out of life. But the multinational with a market cap of over $158 billion recognizes that its growth has come at the expense of the environment. The company invests over $1 billion annually on research and development, of which new plastics innovation is a component, but declined to tell CNBC how much its plastics initiatives specifically are costing.
It is benefiting the company: In 2018, the 26 Unilever brands that are aligned with its sustainability initiatives grew 46% faster than the rest of the business and also outperformed in turnover growth, according to the company.
In November 2010 under the guidance of now-former CEO Paul Polman, the company launched its industry-leading sustainable living plan, which has guided the company’s approach to product design and redesign ever since. Oversight of this global initiative starts at the top: reporting directly to the company’s CEO and executive leadership, a steering team meets five times per year and is accountable to the executive for the sustainable living plan’s goals. They rely on a series of internal groups devoted to everything from sustainable packaging to water use.
Unilever also runs its own Safety and Environmental Assurance Centre (SEAC) that takes a science-focused look at the environmental impacts of products throughout their life cycle, including when they go down the drain.
- The consumer giant has cut down on plastic use by 15% and is using bioplastics and refillable metal bottles for items like deodorant.
- The global plastic packaging market is on pace to reach $300 billion, but many of Unilever’s newest top-selling brands are the ones aligned with its Sustainable Living Plan.
Transforming plastic
Since 2017, one of the plan’s main focuses has been plastic. That’s when Unilever signed on to an Ellen MacArthur Foundation initiative called The New Plastics Economy, committed to making all of its plastic packaging either reusable, recyclable, or compostable by 2025. Doing so will ensure that plastic packaging stays within a “circular economy” where it can be produced and reused, rather than becoming waste. That means not only developing the technology to make plastics that can be effectively recycled, but also transforming its global supply chain. Both are major challenges. “I’m convinced that we are going to move more as a society into some of those spaces around reduce and reuse, and [Unilever] will be at the forefront of doing that,” says Richard Slater, chief research and development officer for Unilever. Slater, who took over the role in April 2019, says Unilever’s commitment to sustainability was a big reason he was drawn to the company. Inside the company, this attitude toward plastic shows up in a framework used throughout the business, referred to as “less/better/no.” It’s visible in their finished products: shampoo bottles that contain around 15% less plasticthanks to the introduction of bubbles into the material; replacing traditional plastics with bioplastics made of materials like cornstarch; and goods that use no plastic in their packaging, like refillable deodorants that come in a metal tube. Addressing the issue of packaging is a great way to start changing the way plastic is used, says Shelie Miller, a University of Michigan professor who studies packaging and sustainability. “Packaging is produced to become waste,” she says. “That makes it unique among manufactured goods.” It’s hard to know exactly how much of the plastic problem is due to plastic packaging, says Melanie Bergmann, a marine biologist and plastic pollution expert at Germany’s Alfred Wegener Institute. However, packaging on consumer products is a significant problem, she says, and unlike many other sources of plastic, “something we can tackle relatively easily.”Rethinking supply chains
Transforming its plastics packaging market has required ongoing change in the company’s supply chain, both in working with existing suppliers to change their practices and with new partners like Terracycle’s consumer goods distribution system Loop, which will be testing consumer uptake on products like refillable aluminum deodorants for some of Unilever’s top brands. The Loop Initiativehas buy-in from some of the world’s biggest brands, including Unilever competitors Procter & Gamble, Nestlé, Coca-Cola and PepsiCo. Terracycle’s partners involved with the initiative include logistics company UPS, European retailer Carrefour and resource management company Suez. On the materials side, too, the drive to develop better plastics has seen Unilever partner with startups like Ioniqa, which bills itself as a “high tech chemical company”, and broader industry initiatives like the Bioplastic Feedstock Alliance, a World Wildlife Federation-led initiatives to develop biodegradable plastics that don’t compete with food security. The company is also “engaged with several bio-plastic suppliers,” according to a company spokesperson. Unilever also is pushing forward on in-house initiatives such as developing a new pigment for black plastic such as that used for the company’s TRESemmé line of shampoos and conditioners. Traditional black plastic is not detectable by the infrared sorters that recyclers use and must therefore be thrown out. Unilever’s solution is a new kind of pigment that can be detected by the sorters, allowing its black plastic bottles to be recycled at traditional recycling facilities. Within industry, “Unilever is really seen as a leader in sustainability,” says Miller. “They have a track record of being a leader in efforts to reduce overall environmental impacts, so it’s not surprising that they are ahead of the curve here.” From the investment perspective, this is one of the most lucrative markets to get into. However, creating a circular plastic economy for its many products isn’t a simple undertaking. “One of the challenges we face in many places around the world is availability of material, ” says Louis Lindenberg, Unilever’s Global Packaging Sustainability Director. “We’ve had to work with our supply chain partners to identify what material is required where, how much is available, what the gap is, and how we fill that gap.” One example is in Brazil, whereUnilever recently partnered with local recycler Wise to expand local recycling capacity in order to get the recycled materials it needs to meet its commitments, Lindenberg said. There’s no guarantee that the things they try will get consumer uptake. The company’s found high consumer acceptance for initiatives like moving towards things like 100 percent recycled or recyclable plastics, Slater says. But on the no-plastic side, with things like the Loop initiative and other refill and reuse systems, “we really are more in pilot mode there.” Initiatives like these are also what will keep Unilever competitive into the future, says Slater. In its 2018 annual report, the multinational named plastic packaging as a “principal risk” to its business. “Both consumer and customer responses to the environmental impact of plastic waste and emerging regulation by governments to tax or ban the use of certain plastics requires us to find solutions,” reads the message to shareholders. By 2025, the year when Unilever and other signatories to the New Plastics Economy agreement have pledged to transform their packaging, Grand View Research predicts that the global plastic packaging market will reach a market size of $269.6 billion USD, up from a 2017 valuation of $198 billion. Key drivers of this market are the convenience and low cost of plastic packaging, but according to numbers produced by Transparency Market Research, consumers are willing to pay nearly 10 percent more for sustainable packaging. “Consumers are looking for sustainable packaging, says TMR senior market analyst Ismail Sutaria. “At the same time, the packaging should be easy to use.” At the moment, the food and beverage sectors have the biggest market share for sustainable packaging, he says, with cosmetics and personal care not far behind, meaning that Unilever stands to benefit strongly from investment in this area. Increased focus on sustainable packaging will get the eye of investors on a company, Sutaria says. “From the investment perspective, this is one of the most lucrative markets to get into.” By working to change the plastics market, Unilever is paving the way for its own future.The Future of Brand Packaging Lies in Sustainable Practices and Materials
Finding ways to make products last rather than dispose of them
I can’t remember a time when fellow designers and myself weren’t concerned about reducing packaging waste and the impact our work had on the planet. We shared stories like, “The time I went fishing and saw the Downy fabric softener bottle I designed floating in the pristine mountain lake.” Our clients were looking at light-weighting, minimizing parts, refilling SKUs and incorporating recyclable resins to help achieve sustainability.
But consumers were busier than ever, and packaging innovation was all about convenience. The original Tide liquid package and the revolution it started in delivering a much more convenient, less messy approach to adding detergent to the wash comes to mind. All that plastic in the waste stream versus the paperboard carton of dry powder was the price to pay for a happy consumer. It seemed that innovation in packaging was creating more waste, not less.
Now our single-use disposable packaging world is changing again, and it’s thanks to consumer demand. Witness the backlash against plastics with the ubiquitous refillable metal water bottle in everyone’s hands; the ban of single-use plastic bags in New York, California and elsewhere; the focus on how our oceans are overflowing, not with fish, but with tons of plastic. Efforts to recycle are also proving too difficult and costly to be effective and also don’t address the root cause of the issue.
With consumer acceptance growing, we now have the opportunity to view packaging as durable rather than disposable and offer solutions that are truly sustainable while delivering usage experiences never before possible.
One evolving option is the Loop system, a zero-waste platform announced at the World Economic Forum and formed by a coalition of major consumer product manufacturers, including Procter & Gamble, Nestle, PepsiCo and Unilever. With pilot programs rolling out in New York in May, this circular shopping platform features products in durable packages that are delivered, consumed and then returned back to the manufacturer to be cleaned and refilled before being sent out again.
This major shift in ownership of the package from the consumer to the brand is a ticket to unfettered imagination in consumer experience and sustainability. The package essentially becomes an asset and can be viewed and designed as a device. This unlocks technologies that can change the experience of the user in ways never before possible. Brands can rethink what their package does and how the consumer uses it, such as a pill package that reminds you when to take or reorder pills, detect when food has expired (say goodbye to the smell test), automatically order more product when it’s running low or even self-seal to ensure freshness.
So, now it’s up to the brands to rise to the challenge and think of their packaging in new and different ways. Here are tips for how brands can do this successfully.
Define the ideal experience from your consumer’s point of view
What can be done for consumers to change their experience and differentiate brands from the competition? For the Loop initiative, Häagen-Dazs developed a refillable stainless steel ice cream tub that keeps the product colder longer. Reusable packages have the potential to allow technological features that make them more “intelligent,” able to anticipate user needs, etc. Think of it as a chance to deliver something to consumers that is really important to them and even tailored to their unique lifestyle.Test it to understand the real value delivered
Make sure that you avoid gimmicks. Usability studies and in-home usage tests provide a window into the real world. Think of this as designing an asset so that it can be robustly engineered. For pharmaceuticals that need to be kept secure, a locking mechanism that can only be opened by the patient or verify that the patient has taken their medication for the day can be incorporated.
Determine the perceived quality standards
Does the consumer believe specific defects to be unacceptable? What does the consumer perceive if there’s a dent in these reusable packages? Can these be designed for disassembly and repair? If a product is damaged, can it be repaired cost effectively? There can be a fine line between healthy wear and tear that signifies a sustainable journey and wondering what the last user did to it because it’s all scratched up.
Source a supplier network of quality vendors
Brands that are currently manufactured using plastic need to source entirely new manufacturing partners. Finding the right partner manufacturers willing to take on these new challenges and utilizing the right technology is key.
Why reusable food packaging has a promising future
TerraCycle
Mars
Nestle
Unilever
Include USA
Danone
Mondelez
UPS
Proctor & Gamble
Loop
The Body Shop
Coco-Cola European Partners
In searching for an innovative method to provide consumers with sustainable yet convenient packaging options, companies including Tyme Fast Food and TerraCycle's Loop program, as well as retailers including PCC Community Markets have reimagined packaging as something reusable rather than disposable.
Why reusable food packaging has a promising future
TerraCycle
pepsico
Mars
Nestle
Unilever
Include USA
Danone
Mondelez
UPS
Proctor & Gamble
Loop
The Body Shop
Coca-Cola European Partners
Clorox
In searching for an innovative method to provide consumers with sustainable yet convenient packaging options, companies including Tyme Fast Food and TerraCycle's Loop program, as well as retailers including PCC Community Markets have reimagined packaging as something reusable rather than disposable.
Why Reusable Food Packaging Has a Promising Future
TerraCycle
pepsico
Mars
Nestle
Unilever
Include USA
Danone
Mondelez
UPS
Proctor & Gamble
Loop
The Body Shop
Coca-Cola European Partners
Clorox
In searching for an innovative method to provide consumers with sustainable yet convenient packaging options, companies including Tyme Fast Food and TerraCycle's Loop program, as well as retailers including PCC Community Markets have reimagined packaging as something reusable rather than disposable.
A Reuse-Heavy Circular Economy Could Help Lower Plastic Pollution
Alicia Forero is with TerraCycle, a company that specializes in hard-to-recycle things like cigarette butts and dirty diapers. She says one of the biggest drivers of recycling today is the desire to turn a profit.