The move builds on the company’s partnership with Saudi Arabia’s state-owned chemicals company SABIC, and food packaging specialist Huhtamaki
Mars will initially use the updated packaging for its SHEBA cat food brand. (Credit: Florian Bollmann from Pixabay.)
US-based pet food manufacturer Mars Petcare is set to use food-safe recycled plastic in wet pet food packaging, in a push to increase recycled content in its plastic packaging.
The updated packaging formats will be initially used for its cat food brand SHEBA, in Europe starting from 2022.
The move builds on the company’s partnership with Saudi Basic Industries Corp. (SABIC) and food packaging specialist Huhtamaki to deploy recycled plastic in pet food pouches.
In September this year, Mars Petcare UK has replaced all plastic shrink film packaging with cardboard across its Pedigree, Whiskas, Chappie and Kitekat brands.
Mars chief procurement and sustainability officer Barry Parkin said: “We are pleased to share this progress in our sustainable pet food packaging journey.
“Over the past year, we have been closely working with SABIC and Huhtamaki, continually testing and learning and scaling up the recycled plastic content in our pet food packs.
“As part of our Sustainable in a Generation plan, we are committed to doing our part to help drive a circular economy, which includes redesigning our packages for circularity.
“The fact that we are now able to introduce recycled content into our SHEBA pouches helps accelerate our journey to achieve 30% average recycled content in our plastic packaging and to reduce by 25% our use of virgin plastic.”
Mars Petcare leverages ISCC PLUS certified recycled plastic material and applies advanced recycling technology with its partners, SABIC and Huhtamaki.
SABIC offers TRUCIRCLE plastic portfolio, which includes certified circular products derived from plastic household packaging, that are difficult-to-recycle otherwise.
Its TRUCIRCLE polymers can be used in wet pet food packaging such as SHEBA pouch.
Huhtamaki has technical expertise in formulating and producing easy-tear sterilisable polypropylene films such as Terolen, which can be used in wet pet food packaging.
Huhtamaki flexible packaging business segment president Marco Hilty said: “We are proud to work with Mars and SABIC on a concrete solution which can be used globally.
“Successfully processing recycled polymers into high-quality, easy tear films for wet retort packaging at an industrial scale is a significant milestone in delivering on our ambition to have more than 80% of our raw materials renewable or recycled.”
SABIC general manager PP, PET, PS, PVC, PU & Elastomers Businesses for Petrochemicals Lada Kurelec said: “The transformation of the industry towards a circular economy requires unprecedented innovation and intensive collaboration across the value chain. Together, we have set another milestone on this exciting journey.”