Applications Danone and
Applications Danone and WWF Introduce Activia in PLA Cups Danone, the world’s leading producer in volume of Fresh Dairy Products has switched to Ingeo PLA for its Activia yogurt in Germany. The new yogurt pack is the result of a close cooperation between Danone, WWF- Germany and NatureWorks. The switch to the technologically innovative material will improve the product’s packaging carbon footprint by 25% and use 43% less fossil resources compared to the previous packaging made of Polystyrene. In addition in mid-term Danone is aiming at initiating a new closed material loop, i.e. PLA packaging shall be recycled into PLA. Danone is the first company to switch to environmentally friendly packaging for a leading yogurt product in Europe. The cup was developed in close cooperation between Danone and WWF. All environment-relevant aspects were taken into consideration. This is also documented by the WWF logo on the packs and the slogan ‘partner for environmentally friendy packaging’. For WWF packaging made of PLA are definitely a seminal alternative: “Plastics made from renewable resources are a step towards our vision of a world without fossil oil. A material made from sunlight, CO 2 and water is groundbreaking. In addition plastics score with exemplary recyclability”, said Eberhard Brandes, Executive Director of WWF Germany. “Going forward, it is increasingly important for companies and brands to realize that the path ahead is one of technological investment, sustainable development and high quality in all aspects of product production – packaging included,” says Andreas Ostermayr, CEO Danone Germany and Switzerland. “With our partners, we have taken a first significant step in the packaging development of the future.” Please find more details of Danone’s environmental strategies in the Top-Talk interview on page 14f that bioplastics MAGAZINE conducted with Rainer Barthel, Head of R&D Packaging Central Europe of Danone, during interpack 2011 in Düsseldorf, Germany. In terms of the aggregate annual environmental benefit associated with the Activia pack switch, raw material supplier NatureWorks estimates fossil energy savings equivalent to the electricity consumed per month by 13,000 German homes, along with greenhouse gas savings equivalent to not driving a vehicle 19,000,000 km. “The Activia packaging is an excellent example of international collaboration for a smarter consumer product and one we are proud to showcase as an international best practice example,” says NatureWorks’ CEO, Marc Verbruggen. “NatureWorks worked closely with Danone and WWF, not only to supply the material solution, but also to rigorously address questions and provide data around the entire supply chain from field to product. Now we’re continuing our collaboration to create a new option for recovery of the package after use.” Together, NatureWorks, Danone and WWF are working to achieve the International Sustainability and Carbon Certification (ISCC) for the new Activia packaging. The ISCC seal assures that the entire supply chain for the Ingeo raw materials meets rigorous social and environmental criteria. The end result of the international product development collaboration between Danone, WWF and NatureWorks is a packaging option that is indistinguishable visually and performance-wise from its predecessor, while at the same time being better for the environment. www.danone.de www.wwf.de 32 bioplastics MAGAZINE [03/11] Vol. 6
