Heinz and Coca-Cola in sustainable packaging partnership

PlantBottle packaging is designed to look, feel and function exactly like traditional PET plastic. The key difference is that up to 30pc of the material is made from plants so there is a lower reliance on non-renewable resources. The production process involves converting natural sugars found in plants into a key component for PET plastic. Currently, PlantBottle is made using sugarcane ethanol from Brazil, which, according to Coca-Cola, is “the only source widely recognised by thought leaders globally for its unique environmental and social performance”.

Coca-Cola first launched PlantBottle in 2009 on a range of brands including Coke, Sprite, Fresca and Dasani.

Making the announcement, the companies said the partnership is an industry-first, and one that they both hope others will follow to transform how food is packaged around the world.

 “PlantBottle is revolutionising plastic, and our partnership with Heinz is paving the way for industry-wide collaboration,” said Muhtar Kent, chairman and CEO of The Coca-Cola Company. “This partnership is a great example of how businesses are working together to advance smart technologies that make a difference to our consumers and the planet we all share.”

Heinz’s adoption of the PlantBottle technology will be the biggest change to its ketchup bottles since it first introduced plastic in 1983. It will launch PlantBottle in all 20-ounce ketchup bottles in June with ‘talking labels’ asking, “Guess what my bottle is made of?” Packaging will be identified by a special logo and on-pack messages.

“The partnership of Coca-Cola and Heinz is a model of collaboration in the food and beverage industry that will make a sustainable difference for the planet,” said Heinz chairman, president and CEO William R Johnson. “Heinz Ketchup is going to convert to PlantBottle globally, beginning with our best-selling 20-ounce variety of Heinz Ketchup, which will reach consumers this summer.”

The two companies said the “iconic status” of their brands will greatly raise awareness about the benefits of PlantBottle packaging. Heinz will introduce 120m PlantBottle packages in 2011 and The Coca-Cola Company will use more than 5bn during the same time.

Heinz said that switching to PlantBottle is another important step in its global sustainability initiative to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, solid waste, water consumption and energy usage at least 20pc by 2015.

And, according to Coca-Cola, the use of PlantBottle packaging across multiple brands enables it to significantly reduce its dependence on non-renewable resources. In a statement, it said an initial life-cycle analysis conducted by Imperial College London indicates that that the use of PlantBottle packaging provides a 12-19pc reduction in carbon impact. It said the use of this packaging eliminated the equivalent of almost 30,000 metric tons of carbon dioxide, or approximately 60,000 barrels of oil, in 2010.

Currently, Coca-Cola uses the packaging in nine markets including Canada, Mexico, Chile, Brazil, Japan, Denmark, Sweden, Norway and the United States, while the company plans to expand to over a dozen new markets in 2011. By 2020, Coca-Cola’s goal is to transition all of its plastic packaging to PlantBottle packaging.