Sonoco’s fully recyclable paperboard packaging solution will help Premier Foods to remove 40 tonnes of packaging used for its best-selling Bisto gravy drum, as it aims to reduce its environmental footprint
Premier Foods, one of Britain’s largest listed food companies, is continuing its work to reduce its environmental impact while helping its customers make more sustainable choices. The food manufacturer has introduced its new sized Bisto Gravy product, which will now come in caddies that are 8mm smaller than the previous edition. This will save 40 tonnes of paper annually at Premier Food’s Bisto manufacturing line in Worksop, Nottinghamshire.
Using recyclable paperboard drums produced by Sonoco, one of the largest global packaging companies, the new Bisto packaging gives shoppers an additional 20g of gravy granules (190g total) – approximately six more portions per tub – for the exact same price as before, while being presented in packaging that uses fewer resources.
Savan Sabharwal, Marketing Controller at Bisto says: “Reducing the size of our drum is a great example of how small changes can ladder up to make a big difference. We make around 50 million Bisto gravy drums each year and so change of this scale requires real collaboration. We’re really pleased to have found a more sustainable solution while retaining the quality of Bisto that people love and expect.”
Sonoco’s paperboard container is made from recycled paper fibre, including a paperboard end. All inks and adhesives are water-based, and all materials used in the packaging are easily separable within the recycling process. The UK requires at least 85% paperboard* to accept packaging in the paper waste stream, and the Bisto drums exceed that requirement as it is made of 95% paperboard, allowing shoppers to dispose of all empty Bisto caddies via UK-wide kerbside recycling collections.
Philip Brown, UK Sales Manager at Sonoco Consumer Products Europe says: “For Premier Foods, sustainable packaging solutions are essential, and they are also very aware of the need to reduce the amount of packaging that is being used for each product. Premier’s decision to reduce the height of the drum demonstrates its determination to give its customers a solution that uses less resources, while also giving them more of the products they love at the same great price, and with freshness and quality assured. We’re delighted that they have adopted our paperboard packaging solution to meet their sustainability goals.”
Premier Foods is in the process applying the new height to all its gravy drums, which include Chicken, Onion, Turkey and Vegetable.
*The U.K. currently requires at least 85% paperboard to accept packaging in the paper waste stream, with a plan to increase to 90% required by 2023. This paper-based packaging format exceeds that requirement as it is made of 95% paperboard.
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