Tetra Pak, a world leading food processing and packaging solutions company, is acknowledged the world over for its commitment to environmental sustainability. On this journey towards building a more sustainable planet, Tetra Pak India has launched the “Go nature. Go Carton.” campaign to draw attention towards climate change and the company’s efforts to address these issues through sustainable products and solutions.
The company’s aim is to create the world’s most sustainable package - made solely from responsibly sourced renewable or recycled materials, fully recyclable and carbon neutral. With clear goals for a sustainable future that include 100% renewable packages by 2030 and carbon neutrality by 2050, this campaign shares the steps being taken on this journey.
Ashutosh Manohar, managing director, Tetra Pak South Asia says, “By 2050 the world's population is predicted to reach 9.1 billion, which will require 70% more food availability. Packaging helps keep food safe, nutritious, and available. And, with 33% of food lost or wasted each year, high-performance packaging plays a critical role in today's global food delivery system. We believe that sustainable food processing and packaging solutions can make a difference, feeding a growing population while helping mitigate climate. With Go Nature Go Carton, we are accelerating our mission to create the world’s most sustainable food package”
Tetra Pak’s journey to develop a new sustainable food package includes increasing the use of materials that reduce impact on nature, thereby increasing the paper-based and plant-based content in Tetra Pak’s packages. This also includes sourcing raw materials in a way that protects biodiversity and natural environments. Tetra Pak is also focused on increasing recycling supported by a robust collection, sorting, and recycling infrastructure.
The company asserts that it is critical to look beyond just the end-of-life impact of packaging. “To fairly assess the environmental impact, we must consider the entire life-cycle – from sourcing, to production, distribution and end-of-life. Only through a holistic environmental approach that considers radical decarbonization of materials, can we truly reduce the impact on the planet,” adds Manohar.
Tetra Pak cartons are already over 70% paper-based, with 100% of the paper-board being FSC certified. The cartons are also recyclable, being increasingly recycled through a strong network of collection agencies, recyclers, NGOs and social enterprises. In India, Tetra Pak has established a robust collection and recycling ecosystem over the past 18 years leading to over 40% cartons collected for recycling today. The company works with over 30 collection partners covering 26 States and Union Territories, and 4 independent recyclers to enable recycling of used packages.