According to its 2024 Sustainability Report, Ferrero designed over 92% of its packaging for recycling in the last fiscal year, but it recognizes ongoing challenges with access to recyclate and flexible films.
Ferrero lists packaging design and the circular economy among its key focus areas, setting its sights on mono-materials, flexible films, and replacements for hard-to-recycle plastics.
Back in 2021, the company set a goal to reduce the amount of virgin plastic in its portfolio by 10% against a 2019/20 baseline, and to increase the use of recycled content in its plastic packaging to 12%, by 2025.
In the fiscal year 2022/23, a plastic-to-product ratio was introduced to aid in its reduction target, tracking the trend of reduction (without linking it to a variable baseline) in accordance with growth and acquisitions.
As of fiscal year 2023/24, Ferrero indicates that it had achieved a -13% reduction ratio, and that the recycled content in its plastic packaging had reached 5.8%, rising to 8.1% in rigid plastic packaging specifically. Its renewable material use was much higher, reportedly totalling 40.9%.
Furthermore, 92.1% of its packaging was reportedly designed to be recyclable – aligning with the company’s ‘ambitious’ aim to transition >90% of its packaging into a reusable, recyclable, or compostable format, including acquired businesses. It states that 86.1% of its packaging was recyclable, reusable, or compostable.
“We as Ferrero started setting science-based targets in 2020, and we are confident in reaching our targets by 2030,” says Sara Salvatore, industrial sustainability manager at Ferrero.
Even so, the company acknowledges current difficulties related to the availability of recycled content on the market.
“The lack of development in local collection and recycling infrastructures in many geographical areas results in a shortage of high-quality recyclate, aligned with stringent regulations on food contact requirements,” the report reads. “Food contact recycled plastic availability is very different depending on whether rigid plastic or flexible plastic is considered.
“In the first case, the well-developed collection and recycling infrastructure for PET ensures the availability of recycled PET from mechanical recycling, which allows us to integrate it relatively easily into our packaging, even where there is a food grade requirement.
“The situation is completely different if we consider flexible films, where mainly using chemical recycling would actually guarantee the necessary food safety requirements. In this context, we continue our engagement to support technologies for chemical recycling and align to future legislative requirements.”
However, flexible plastics were thought to constitute only 6% of Ferrero’s packaging output throughout the fiscal year. Rigid plastics apparently comprised 16%, glass 35%, and paper and board 40% of the portfolio.
The company highlights several of its latest packaging redesigns, including a complete conversion of single-wrapped Kinder Choco Fresh, Fiesta, and Kinder Delice products, among others; the ongoing reduction of virgin plastics in its 24-piece Ferrero Rocher box sold in Europe; and a redesigned box for the same product sold in North America, as well as the 16-piece and 30-piece equivalents in China, to replace hard-to-recycle plastic components.
“In recent years, we’ve continuously invested in new packaging lines to support innovation and bring co-designed solutions with our partners to life,” explains global packaging design manager Paola Avogadro. “Now, we’re focusing on the more complex, less obvious parts of our portfolio, targeting packaging that was originally tailored for performance, customer experience, or uniqueness.
“This segment is core to Ferrero and redesigning it poses significant challenges, demanding advanced materials and technologies to change the status quo. Our biggest challenge ahead is making the right global packaging choices to ensure our products stay iconic for the next 50 years.”
The report continues: “Our progress is rooted in our sustainability framework, focusing on four core sustainability pillars: protecting the environment, sourcing ingredients sustainably, promoting responsible consumption and empowering people. We make progress on these pillars by investing in innovation and technology, enhancing transparency and compliance, as well as fostering a culture of collaboration.
“Thanks to the strong connection with our network and our suppliers, our alliances and partnerships, we contribute to the definition and development of the recyclability guidelines with special attention to food safety and the quality needs of our packaging, in multiple discussion forums.
“These guide us in taking decisions on packaging materials and design. Together with third-party experts and laboratories, we evaluate design choices and the impact of our packaging within the recycling chains.
“Finally, in advance of what will be required by the new European PPWR, some of our projects have already exceeded targets imposed by the regulation, incorporating 100% of recycled plastic in our Estathé bottles range instead of 25% mandatory targets in 2025, as per the Single-Use Plastic Directive (SUPD), and future requirement of the PPWR (30% by 2030).
“We continue to deliver on our current goals and we have kicked off new workstreams to proactively address the upcoming regulatory requirements. In the meanwhile, we look ahead, designing our future packaging strategy.”
In its own ESG Summary for 2024, PepsiCo identified a 15% increase in recycled plastic across its primary packaging in key markets between 2023 and 2024 and a 5% reduction in virgin plastic tonnage. This comes after its packaging targets were revised in May, reportedly to reflect limitations outside the company’s control.
Diageo has also revisited its environmental targets and now aims for 50% recycled content in its packaging by 2030 and net zero emissions by 2050. It is no longer working towards a 10% reduction in packaging weight or 100% renewable energy.
On a wider scale, Neil Osment, managing director of packaging market research company NOA, recently shared his view on the barriers that have prevented major brand owners from meeting their sustainable packaging targets, and offered his advice on how to overcome them.
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