Quotables/By the Numbers

BY THE NUMBERS

80

The number of new recycling plants, with an average output of 18,000 tons/ yr, that are needed to meet California’s mandate for 25% food-grade PCR content in plastic beverage bottles by 2025

$127.6M

The value of the yogurt that’s thrown away each year by U.K. shoppers, a problem retailer Co-op hopes to address by removing the use-by dates on its own-brand yogurt products

50%

The growth of the canned cocktail market between 2019 and 2021; the category is expected to reach between $3 billion and $4 billion in the coming years, according to industry tracker IWSR

8

The number of Evol single-serve frozen meals now Certified Carbon Neutral through the Carbonfree Product Certification Program, which means their products have net-zero CO2 emissions over their full life cycle— including packaging “From our standpoint, limited-edition releases allow the manufacturer to bring innovation to the category with unique packaging, styles, and flavor profiles. This is not only beneficial for the manufacturer, but the retailer as well. It gives the retailer a new and exciting product that can break frame during key periods of the year. It creates excitement and demand for the consumer, benefiting the manufacturer, retailer and, most importantly, the consumer all at once.”

–Jason Folaron, brand manager for Labatt Brewing Co., in an article from Progressive Grocer, “The Unlimited Appeal of Limited-Edition Beverages”

“European countries have had EPR [extended producer responsibility] schemes for many years. I haven’t seen any evidence that they’ve meaningfully changed the amount of packaging used, or recycled. They’re just an attempt to recoup some money from packaging producers for the municipalities that badly need it to pay [materials recovery facilities] and recyclers.”

–Julia Attwood, head of sustainable materials at BloombergNEF, in an article, “States Awash in Plastic Packaging Want Manufacturers to Pay Up,” from Bloomberg

“The CPG industry’s wages have outpaced the national average for months, but the industry still has 112,000 open jobs. Pay alone is not closing the gap fast enough. With a relatively low unemployment rate, we need to understand what will motivate workers who haven’t reentered the labor force to return and design around those needs.”

–Tom Madrecki, vice president of supply chain and logistics for the Consumer Brands Association, in an article from Powder & Bulk Solids, “How CPG Manufacturers Are Countering Labor Shortages”

“As we continue to reduce the use of virgin plastic, new technologies such as chemical recycling can help drive up recycling rates and increase the availability of food grade recycled materials. The principles and Life Cycle Assessment work from The Consumer Goods Forum is key to ensuring this can happen in a safe and environmentally sound way.”

–Colin Kerr, packaging director for Unilever, in a press release from The Consumer Goods Forum, “Consumer Goods Companies Announce Position on Chemical Recycling Technologies and Publish Life Cycle Assessment”