The elimination of plastic straws will help Müller to significantly reduce the use of plastic
Image: Müller has committed to remove plastic straws by 2020. Photo: courtesy of Müller UK & Ireland.
Dairy company Müller has unveiled plans to remove all plastic straws from its products by 2020, as part of the sustainable efforts.
Situated in Glasgow, the sunnyside Primary School will work with Müller to test the new paper straw, which is attached to the recyclable school milk cartons.
Müller said that it has already eliminated 10,000 tonnes of plastic from its milk bottles since 2016 and the latest initiative will help reduce the plastic use.
Around 40% of the plastic in Müller’s fresh milk bottles is made from recycled material
Müller’s fresh and flavoured milk bottles, which are 100% recyclable, include 40% of the plastic made from recycled material.
Müller has also eliminated an additional 700 tonnes of plastic per annum by reducing the weight of its recyclable fresh milk bottles and milk caps.
Müller Milk & Ingredients customer innovation head Gareth Budd said: “We’ve already removed 10,000 tonnes of plastic from our packaging in recent years, our fresh milk bottles are 100% recyclable, and they contain up to 40% recycled material.
“But to ensure that future generations continue to benefit from the goodness of fresh school milk, we recognise the need to continually innovate and update our packaging.”
The dairy company’s new fully recyclable paper straw has been developed in collaboration with Tetra Pak over the last 18 months. The straw is produced by using the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) certified paperboard.
At present, the company is undertaking further trials with the new paper straws at its Bridgwater site. Based on the success, Bridgwater will commence the permanent introduction of the paper straws by the end of March 2020.
Müller’s other school milk producing sites will follow by the end of 2020, helping to scrap 48 tonnes of plastic per annum.
Tetra Pak Europe and Central Asia president Charles Brand said: “It is important that we launch a sustainable paper straw that is fully functional, recyclable and does not compromise on food safety.”