US: Mars to ‘upcycle’ product packaging
By: just-food.com | 22 April 2009
US confectionery giant Mars has partnered with 'upcycle' firm TerraCycle to repurpose the company's waste packaging into products.
TerraCycle will produce "affordable, high-quality" consumer goods by repurposing surplus and used packaging from more than 20 Mars brands, including Twix, Starburst, Uncle Ben's and Seeds of Change.
The firm will produce products ranging from cell phone holders and laptop sleeves to messenger bags, in a bid to significantly reducing the amount of waste sent to landfills.
Mars will also sponsor TerraCycle 'Brigade programmes,' in which organisations can raise money by collecting used packaging from participating brands and sending it to TerraCycle.
Mars said it has committed to reducing its waste by 3% a year.
"We at Mars take very seriously our responsibility to uphold our efficiency principle and cut waste," said Richard Ware, vice president of supply chain, R&D and sustainability at Mars. "This partnership with TerraCycle demonstrates Mars ongoing commitment to making a difference by reducing the impact of our manufacturing plants on the planet each year."
TerraCycle distributes its products across the US and plans to expand into Mexico, Brazil, Canada and the UK over the coming year. Its products are available in retailers such as Wal-Mart, Target and Petco.
Sectors: Confectionery, Sustainability & the environment
View next/previous articles
22 Apr 2009 -
22 Apr 2009 -
Currently reading -
US: Mars to ‘upcycle’ product packaging
22 Apr 2009 -
Related research
This Key Note Market Report Plus examines the performance of the UK confectionery market. From 2004, sales are estimated to have grown by 6.9% to reach a value of £4.66bn — an estimated fall of 0.3% from 2007. The two main sectors of the market are t...
Pet Food and Pet Care Products in Germany
Euromonitor International's Pet Food and Pet Care in Germany report offers a comprehensive guide to the size and shape of the market at a national level. It provides the latest retail sales data (2003-2008), allowing you to identify the sectors drivi...
Pet Food and Pet Care Products in France
Euromonitor International's Pet Food and Pet Care in France report offers a comprehensive guide to the size and shape of the market at a national level. It provides the latest retail sales data (2003-2008), allowing you to identify the sectors drivin...
Related articles
Read more on this hot issue
Earth Day inspires 'green' awareness
A number of environmentally-friendly initiatives and products have been unveiled by food companies in the lead up to Earth Day, which is marked today (22 April). But how strong is mainstream consumer interest in green issues? Ben Cooper examines the degree to which environmental concerns are shaping consumer motivation in the US food market.
There are currently no comments on this article
Be the first to comment on this article