Nestlé targets 100% sustainable packaging by 2025

Nestlé has joined the growing number of multinational companies, which are recognising their crucial role in reducing the amount of global plastic waste.

“There is an urgent need to minimize the impact of packaging on the environment”, the Swiss company said in a statement this week.

As a result, it is now aiming to make all its products recyclable or reusable within the next eight years.

Nestlé’s CEO Mark Schneider commented: "Plastic waste is one of the biggest sustainability issues the world is facing today. Tackling it requires a collective approach. We are committed to finding improved solutions to reduce, re-use and recycle. Our ambition is to achieve 100% recyclable or reusable packaging by 2025."

To tackle this issue the company is looking to focus on three areas where it can make the most impact: eliminating non-recyclable plastics; adopting plastics which have higher recycling rates, and removing packaging which combine materials making them hard to reuse.

The food and drink giant has previously won plaudits for its sustainable practices, including for high levels of water conservation and management in the creation of its products.

Highlighting the need for “developing a circular economy”, Nestlé is now committing itself to creating a larger market for plastic recycling, accelerating its own schemes, but also working with supply chain partners on new packaging methods, which reduce waste.

Louise Edge at Greenpeace UK welcomed the latest pledge but also said their new commitments “lack ambition”.

“Nestlé needs to do more to move the needle towards the elimination of problem plastic…A rubbish truck load of plastic enters the ocean every minute and huge multinationals selling plastic products need to play a bigger part in turning the tide. Nestle should remove non-recyclable plastic far sooner than 2025, and phase out all single-use plastic packaging", she added.

 

Photo Credit: Nestlé