Napoleon Hill wrote that victory is always possible for the person who refuses to stop fighting, a fitting theme in the face of 2020. And Nestlé is proving itself among those that will not be deterred from the fight to make 100 percent of its packaging recyclable or reusable by 2025.
"We have made strides in our transformative journey toward a waste-free future, but we know that we have more work to do. As the world's largest food and beverage company, we're committed to putting our size and scale to work to tackle the packaging waste problem everywhere that we operate," Véronique Cremades-Mathis, Global Head of Sustainable Packaging, said.
In its latest moves, the company unveiled an intensified series of investments and initiatives in its sustainability transformation, Nestlé has continued to move on its three-part plan to develop new packaging, shape a waste-free future, and drive new behavior.
Among the new initiatives, Nestlé said it has invested upward of $30 million to increase food-grade recycled plastics in the U.S. and a first-of-its-kind recyclable paper packaging for Maggi bouillon cubes in France. 87 percent of Nestlé's total packaging by weight and 66 percent of its total plastic packaging is already recyclable or reusable, according to a press release.
Additionally, the company announced that it is seeking to identify and support innovative solutions through the Nestlé Creating Shared Value (CSV) Prize, which launches at the end of this month, September 30.
In partnership with the non-profit organization Ashoka, Nestlé said its CSV Prize will award CHF 250,000 (almost $273,000) in grants for system change innovations in areas like alternative delivery systems and ground-up solutions to tackle plastic waste.
Research from the institute, which has around 50 scientists who conduct cutting-edge packaging research, include new refillable or reusable systems, simplified materials, high-performance barrier papers, and the introduction of more recycled content to Nestlé's packaging.
Collaborating with research institutions, start-ups, and suppliers, the program includes working with more than 180 packaging experts across Nestlé's global R&D network.
With promises of even more new alternative packaging materials, delivery systems, and investments in infrastructure promised, it seems that there is plenty of fight left in Nestlé for the remainder of 2020 and beyond.
