Major Brands Working Towards a Waste Free Future
Over the past decade, many major companies and brands have made huge strides toward sustainability by joining the zero waste movement. Essentially the zero waste movement is the initiative to send nothing to a landfill, reduce what is needed, reuse as much as possible, send little to be recycled, and compost what cannot.
If you don’t already know these companies, their zero-waste products and services, or their initiatives to reduce the amount of waste we all produce on a daily basis, below we’ll look at some of the top zero waste companies aiming to produce less waste. Whether that’s by tackling the enormous task of diverting manufacturing waste from landfills or by giving consumers the tools and opportunities to eliminate waste at home, both small businesses and giant corporations are beginning to make the change and work towards a zero-waste future.
Nestle
Nestle’s vision is that none of their packaging, including plastics, ends up in a landfill or as litter, including in oceans, lakes or rivers and they have been working hard to deliver on it and help to achieve a waste-free future. In 2018, they announced their commitment to making 100% of their packaging recyclable or reusable by 2025 and by 2020, the company already had a shocking 88% of their packaging recyclable or reusable!
Recently, Nestle transitioned the iconic Smarties brand to recyclable paper packaging. Smarties is the first global confectionery brand to switch to recyclable paper packaging. Paper is a desirable product because it is recyclable, however, it does not have the same functional properties as plastic, so the company worked closely with paper experts to responsibly source a material that was sufficiently durable, but could seal and be recyclable.
Mars
Mars is extremely proud of their products, but they also care deeply about the impact of packaging waste on land and in the ocean, which is why they’ve decided to rethink the approach to their packaging. As part of their Sustainable Packaging Plan, they’ve began taking action to redesign their packaging portfolio to reduce the packaging they don’t need, and to redesign the packaging they do need to ensure it is reusable, recyclable or compostable.
In the U.S., the Mars Wrigley team recently launched a 30-piece Mega Pack of Orbit gum, a more sustainable option featuring an outer plastic package designed to be recycled in roughly half the U.S. recycling streams. The back of each pack also features an on-pack guide from How2Recycle, a standardized labeling system that clearly communicates on whether and how to recycle each part of the pack.
In France, the Mars Wrigley team recently launched a new M&M’s pouch. The team simplified the design and structure of the pouch by using only one type of plastic material, which resulted in flexible plastic packaging that can be recyclable according to the existing local packaging waste collection and sorting system.
Unilever
There’s a good reason why Unilever often tops the list of best zero waste companies. The company achieved its Zero-Waste-to-Landfill goal in 2016, six years ahead of schedule, and has maintained it ever since. Doing this at a company with 242 factories in 67 countries that produce an extensive variety of products required a lot of innovation.
In 2022, Unilever plans to debut a new laundry detergent bottle, using a new technology to create the first-ever paper-based laundry detergent bottle, made of sustainably sourced pulp and designed to be recycled in standard paper waste streams.
Dove, a Unilever brand, newly launched its first refillable deodorant. The refillable deodorant comes in a durable, precision-engineered stainless steel case that’s designed to last a lifetime. Keeping raw materials to a minimum, the Dove logo is engraved onto the metal, so there’s no plastic or paper wrapping or branding. The case itself is sold in a box made from recyclable 100% Forest Stewardship Council-approved card. It’s a first for the brand and a launch that’s set to disrupt the entire deodorants sector.
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