Race against waste: Carlsberg to eliminate plastic rings
Carlsberg has taken up the mantle in the worldwide push to reduce and remove plastic from circulation, with a series of innovations including the new "snap pack" that aims to eliminate those pesky (and dangerous, environmentally speaking) plastic rings from its packaging.
Print11 September 2018
If you’re one of those people who pulls apart the plastic rings that bind beers can before recycling them (but if you’re not, you should be), then you will be pleased at this new innovation unveiled by Carlsberg. The beer giant is weighing in on the global push to reduce plastic waste with its new “Snap Pack” innovation, which replaces plastic wrapping and ring pulls with a simple glue that holds the cans together.
Carlsberg says the new process will eliminate up to 1,200 tonnes of plastic waste per year, the equivalent of 60m bags, and reduce the amount of plastic the company uses by a massive 76%.
Carlsberg’s Snap Pack is one of a number of improvements and initiatives Carlsberg has adopted. In addition, the company says it has adjusted the ink it uses on cans, improving their recyclability, and introduced a new coating on its reusable glass bottles, thus extending their lifespan. New caps will also retain the beer’s freshness.
Carlsberg says the innovations are part of a new sustainability programme which has the ultimate ambition of zero waste and a carbon footprint of zero.
Cees ’t Hart, CEO of the Carlsberg Group, said that the announcement represents an important day for the brand. “We always strive to improve,” Hart said, “and today we show our ambition to follow in our founder’s footsteps towards a better tomorrow. We look forward to giving our consumers better beer experiences with less environmental impact.”
Conservation charity the World Wildlife Fund welcomed the news.
”Our wildlife is drowning in plastic,” said Bo Øksnebjerg, Secretary General of WWF Denmark, “and we need to act now. That is why we consider it huge progress that Carlsberg is launching solutions that will significantly reduce the amount of plastic in its packaging.
“With these new solutions,” Hart added, “Carlsberg has taken the first big steps on the journey towards a cleaner and greener future.”
To celebrate the launch of the Snap Pack, Carlsberg unveiled its own unique version of Copenhagen’s Little Mermaid statue made entirely from its new Snap Pack cans.
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