Riverford boosts sustainability efforts with Parkside

Organic veg box company, Riverford, has further boosted its sustainability efforts in home compostable packaging after collaborating with a specialist packaging solutions provider, Parkside, to create a compostable pack for its new range of tomatoes.

Riverford delivers 80,000 organic veg boxes every week across the country to a loyal band of customers who share the company’s environmental and ethical ethos.

The company currently uses 82% less plastic in its food packaging when compared to mainstream supermarkets, and the switch to home compostable is part of Riverford’s wider packaging pledge to remove, reduce, and finally switch to home compostable.

All fruit and veg packaging is now paper or home compostable, where packaging is needed at all – most Riverford produce already comes loose, and last year it also launched a Zero Packaging veg box to help shoppers avoid packaging altogether.

Chloe Avery, NPD & project manager at Riverford, commented, “We previously collaborated with Parkside in 2020 to move all our fruit and vegetable packaging to paper or home compostable, where packaging is needed. After great success, we have now introduced a new range of organic tomatoes, and Parkside has enabled us to stick to our sustainability commitments with an innovative compostable solution.”

The pack, created by Parkside, incorporates a fully home compostable duplex laminate for top sealing to paper pulp trays providing an organically recyclable alternative to plastic trays and lidding for Riverford’s organic tomatoes. The design falls under the Parkside Park2Nature portfolio, a sustainable, TUV accredited range of compostable flexible packaging laminates made from renewable resources such as ethically sourced plant fibers.

Park2Nature enables robust product protection through the food supply chain, providing enhanced shelf-life through high barrier performance while meeting strict food hygiene standards.

“As a company, we continually strive to make valued and informed choices when it comes to our products and the environment. This commitment is now reflected across our product range following the implementation of the packaging created by Parkside,” added Avery.

Staci Bye, new business development manager at Parkside, said, “Riverford and the Park2Nature range fit seamlessly together as proved by our collaboration in 2020. It was a pleasure to support the team again in its mission to provide customers with a home compostable packaging solution.”