In an effort to join the sustainability effort and cut down on plastic waste, Diageo Plc said its whisky brand Johnnie Walker scotch would be available in plastic-free bottles from early 2021. The new bottle will be made of recyclable wood pulp and is designed with the help of venture management company Pilot Lite. The bottle will meet all food-grade standards.
Diageo and Pilot Lite together plan to launch Pulpex Limited, a new world-leading sustainable packaging technology company. Pulpex Limited has started a partner consortium of world-leading FMCG companies in non-competing categories, including Unilever, and PepsiCo. New partners are expected to join the effort later in the year. The consortium partners will each launch their own branded paper bottles designed by Pulpex Limited.
Sandy Westwater, Director, Pilot Lite said, “We’re thrilled to be working with global brand leaders in this consortium. By working together, we can use the collective power of the brands to help minimize the environmental footprint of packaging by changing manufacturing and consumer behaviors.”
Pulpex intends to help all the brands rethink their existing designs, and if agreeable, the same can be moved to sustainable packaging without compromising in either quality, the product or its aesthetics.
Ewan Andrew, Chief Sustainability Officer, Diageo PLC, said: “We’re proud to have created this world first. We are constantly striving to push the boundaries within sustainable packaging and this bottle has the potential to be truly ground-breaking. It feels fitting that we should launch it with Johnnie Walker, a brand that has often led the way in innovation throughout its 200 years existence.”
Pulpex Limited manufactures a variety of plastic-free, single mould bottles. This sustainable move to recyclable material in packaging is part of Diageo’s commitment towards Goal 12 of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals: ‘Responsible Consumption and Production’. Diageo uses less than 5 per cent of plastic in packaging. As a part of the UN sustainable program, it (Diageo), along with Pepsico and Unilever, aims to further reduce the use of plastic in packaging units by 2025.
Richard Slater, Chief R&D Officer, Unilever, said: “We believe in tackling plastic waste through innovation and collaboration. We are going to halve our use of virgin plastic at Unilever, reducing our use of plastic packaging by more than 100,000 tonnes in the next five years. Joining forces to develop and test paper bottles is an incredibly exciting step forward, and we’re delighted to be working together to tackle one of the biggest environmental challenges of our time.”
Consumer goods company are under scrutiny for generating a huge amount of plastic waste in the environment. In Europe, nearly 8.2 million ton of plastic was used for packaging food and drink in 2018, says ING.
Sustainability has become a part of corporate social responsibility and the Green office movement. Companies now hire sustainability personnel to see that their corporate philosophy is green and all efforts are made to lessen the harm done to the environment by their company policies.
Simon Lowden, Chief Sustainability Officer, PepsiCo, said: “Innovative solutions and partnerships are critical to driving meaningful progress toward a circular economy. The Pulpex consortium is well positioned to deliver sustainable packaging at scale and across industries, having impact beyond what any organization could achieve alone. We’re proud to be a part of it.”
