Packaging manufacturer Tetra Pak is now using bio-based LDPE plastic in all its containers in Brazil.
The company has initially prioritised the Brazilian market for use of this material, but intends to roll out to other territories.
Combined with paperboard, the LDPE from sugar cane increases the content of renewable sources to as much as 82 per cent in certain containers.
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In February, Coca-Cola Brazil became the first company to use the new bio-based plastic containers for its Del Valle juice brand. Following this success, it is now being extended to all 150 customers that source from Tetra Pak Brazil, which amounts to 13 billion packs per year.
Tetra Pak vice president marketing & product management Charles Brand said: “We are particularly proud to be the first in the industry to use bio-based LDPE in carton packages. We believe that the best way to protect the sustainable future of the packaging industry and meet the global challenge of a growing scarcity of fossil-fuel based raw materials is to further increase the use of renewable resources. We have set an ambition to develop a 100 per cent renewable package, building from an average of 70 per cent today. This launch is an important step in that direction.”
