decline in life support systems - ilsi.eu · – packaging and product (product loss) – packaging...

Food packaging and environmental sustainability

Dr Yves Wyser

Nestlé Research Center

1 ILSI Europe 2012 Annual Symposium, The 21st Century Food Chain, 29-30 March 2012

Food packaging & environmental

sustainability

Y. Wyser, Nestlé Research Center

L. Lundquist, Nestlé Research Center

ILSI Europe Annual Symposium

21st Century Food Chain

29-30 March 2012

Crowne Plaza Brussels Airport

Y. Wyser, L. Lundquist, Mar 2012

Decline in life support systems

Increase in population & consumption

Climate

Urbanisation

Resources

Population

Ecosystems

Water

Consumption


Dr Yves Wyser



Packaging in the sustainability debate


Packaging in the sustainability debate


http://www.prlog.org/10054690-hexis-awarded-fespa-green-planet-friendly-badge.jpg

http://greenpatentblog.com/__oneclick_uploads/2009/06/ok_compost-home.JPG

http://www.recyclenow.com/why_recycling_matters/recycling_symbols.html

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:PEFClogo.JPG

http://go2.wordpress.com/?id=725X1342&site=beanactivist.wordpress.com&url=http://www.bpiworld.org/


Dr Yves Wyser



Outline


• Food packaging & environmental sustainability

– The role of the food & beverage industry

– The role of packaging

• Packaging Environmental Sustainability

– Life cycle assessment & eco-design

– Source optimization

– Bioplastics

– Recovery

• Industry sector initiatives on environmental assessment of

packaging and products

Ranking of major industrial contributors to EU

environmental degradation


1st Food

3rd Furnishings

2nd

Transport

Source : Environmental Impact of Products (EIPRO) - 29.04.05 based on 7 existing studies & own analysis


Dr Yves Wyser



Packaging protects products and prevents waste

• Packaging serves to protect

the food it contains


Planted crops: pre-harvest losses: 7-40%

Harvesting & processing losses: 10-50%

Processing losses (Nestlé): 1-10%

Retail losses: 2%

Consumption

losses: 0-40%

Eaten Food

Total range of food

losses: 19-84%

Source: internal Nestlé research

Further reading: Lundqvist et al., “Saving Water: From Field to Fork – Curbing Losses and Wastage

in the Food Chain”. SIWI Policy Brief. SIWI, 2008.

L. Ventour , “The food we waste”, WRAP Food Waste Report, 2008.

J. Gustavsson et al., Global Food Losses and Food Waste”, FOOD AND AGRICULTURE

ORGANIZATION OF THE UNITED NATIONS, Rome, 2011

M. Manalili et al., Appropriate Food Packaging Solutions for Developing Countries, FOOD AND

AGRICULTURE ORGANIZATION OF THE UNITED NATIONS, Rome, 2011

Packaging inherently contributes to sustainable

development

• Environment

helps make best use of

resources by preventing

losses & spoilage of product

• Economic

makes business possible by

allowing easy distribution of

products

• Social

provides the consumer with

the benefits of fresh and

stable food products



Dr Yves Wyser



Environmental burden shifting between packaging and product


Source: L. Erlöv et al., Packaging – a Tool for the Prevention of Environmental

Impact, Packforsk report No. 194, June 2000.

Global Warming Potential

(kg CO2eq)

Water Consumption (m3)

Non-renewable Energy

Use (MJ)

Ecotoxicity

(PDF×m2×year)

Acidification

(PDF×m2×year)

Land use (m2)

Life Cycle Assessment

The entire life cycle

is taken into account

Different aspects of the environ-

ment are taken into account


http://images.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://www.elrst.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/06/climate-change.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.elrst.com/tag/ipcc/&usg=__gE1sHxGl16IGTwWAKm7gFmPqO3k=&h=850&w=850&sz=82&hl=en&start=6&sig2=6PXE5PvloJx_Ah7Wvnbq4Q&um=1&tbnid=draaEW3z9hR2QM:&tbnh=145&tbnw=145&prev=/images?q=climate+change&hl=en&safe=active&um=1&ei=wax5Str_Hs75-Abu05zEBQ

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http://images.google.co.uk/imgres?imgurl=http://blogs.tnr.com/tnr/blogs/environmentandenergy/urban-sprawl-florida.jpg&imgrefurl=http://blogs.tnr.com/tnr/blogs/environmentandenergy/archive/2008/04/25/a-sprawl-world-after-all.aspx&usg=__M7NcC_dYooi6j5a1mswtopESU0o=&h=365&w=550&sz=70&hl=en&start=2&sig2=A6wlA4QVAWzyCWft141w9w&um=1&tbnid=Y7qI0Z67h83zHM:&tbnh=88&tbnw=133&prev=/images?q=urban+sprawl&hl=en&lr=&safe=active&sa=N&um=1&ei=hmiMSt29BNPJ-QaArYjVDw

http://images.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://www.harrogate.gov.uk/images/pylon.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.harrogate.gov.uk/harrogate-5918&usg=__mffqIaqneXBN6reKVuE6GsCJFBI=&h=600&w=400&sz=45&hl=en&start=1&sig2=6viEBhKO28xq3idMgU9AGA&um=1&tbnid=mky985575rFedM:&tbnh=135&tbnw=90&prev=/images?q=energy+use&hl=en&safe=active&um=1&ei=5Kx5StOMDNDx-Qbzh-3SBQ


Dr Yves Wyser




LCA & Ecodesign required for efficient product development &

substantiation of environmental claims

Ecodesign makes LCA cheaper, faster, and more efficient

Ecodesign

Reducing the environmental impact of packaging

• Reduce weight and volume of packaging

materials

– Source optimisation

• Use of materials from sustainably-managed

renewable resources

– Inherent environmental impact reduction

• Recycling of or energy recovery from used

packaging

– Recovery

• Use of recycled materials

– Valorisation



Dr Yves Wyser



Nestlé Packaging Source Optimization



Source Optimization Example

CARBONATED SOFT

DRINK

BOTTLED WATER PREVIOUS Nestlé

WATERS BOTTLE

NEW ECO-SHAPE NEW ECO-SHAPE

“FEATHER”

9.3

NEW ECO-SHAPE

2010

23.9 21.0 14.5 12.4 10.6

2007 2010


Dr Yves Wyser



Bioplastics

Classification


1. Composition: A plastic based on renewable resources

2. End of life:

A biodegradable or

compostable plastic.

Polyhydroxy-

alkanoates

(PHAs)

Bacterial

celluloses

Xanthan

Curdlan

Pullulan

Directly extracted

from biomass

From

bio-derived

monomers

Produced

by organisms

Polysaccharides

Lipids

Proteins

Polylactic

acid

(PLA)

Other

polyesters

Polyolefins

Fossil based

biodegradable

polymers

Starch

Cellulose

Gums

Chitosan /

Chitin

Animal (casein, whey,

collagen, gelatine)

Plant (zein, soy, gluten)

waxes, fats, oils,

triglycerides

Aliphatic

polyesters

Poly-

caprolactone

(PCL)

Polyvinyl

alcohol

(PVOH)

Bio-based

biodegradable

polymers

Polylactic

acid

(PLA)

Polyhydroxy-

alkanoates

(PHAs)

Starch

Cellulose

Bioplastics

Potential environmental benefits

• Renewable

– Reduced resource depletion

– Reduced global warming

– Water use & Agro impacts ?

AND / OR

• Compostable

– Reduced waste volumes

• Environmental impacts vs other options ?

• Availability of composting infrastructure

• Acceptance ?



Dr Yves Wyser




Renewable bioplastics can reduce greenhouse gas emissions and save non-renewable energy…

…but moving to agricultural production also has other environmental impacts

Fertilizer use results in dead zones

Pesticides impact animals

(Irrigated) agriculture consumes large amounts of water

Cradle-to-Gate estimated LCA data based on Vink et al, 2010 (PLA), Harding et al 2007 (for

PHB), and ecoinvent 2.2 – water use adjusted for avg. corn irrigation in Iowa/Nebraska

Bioplastics - potential for improving environmental performance of

packaging

0

2,5

5

7,5

GW

P (

kg

CO

2 e

q/k

g)

Environmental performance in the application is also determined by

physical properties!

• Equal WVTR to

– PET requires 1.5-200 times more

bioplastics

– PP requires 6-600 times more

bioplastics


Non-performance can remove a potential environmental benefit


Dr Yves Wyser



Gen. 1

Gen. 2

Gen. 3

Three Generations of Bioplastics


Materials like polylactic acid (PLA) that are

derived from food crops. Properties not

suitable for widespread use in packaging.

Conventional plastics like polyethylene derived from

renewable resources like sugar cane (less controversial

than other food crops, more efficient)

New bioplastics adapted to packaging

applications derived from non-food sources

(wood, agricultural waste, drought resistant

plants & algae).

Recovery Encouraging comprehensive recovery schemes

• Reuse

• Recycling

• Energy Recovery

• Organic Recovery


Recycling rate 0% 100%

Energ

y r

equirem

ent

50% rPET

Collection

& cleaning

prohibitive

http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?pid=2614879&id=89639788884


Dr Yves Wyser



Summary: A holistic life cycle approach to packaging is

needed

1. Packaging in context of the packed product

2. Consider all packaging components

– Primary, secondary, transport packaging

3. Covering entire packaging life cycle

– With a comprehensive set of impact categories

To avoid burden shifting between

– Packaging and product (product loss)

– Packaging components

– Life cycle stages

– Environmental media


• Packaging in the Sustainability Agenda: A Guide

for Corporate Decision Makers

• The Consumer Goods Forum Global Packaging

Project

– Framework & Measurement System

• EU Food Sustainable Consumption and

Production Roundtable

– Methodological alignment for food sector


Harmonized guidelines for LCA in the food industry


Dr Yves Wyser



Outlook

• Further reduction of the environmental impact of

packaging

– Packaging performance improvement/optimization

– Enhancement of performance of bioplastics

• Reduction of impact through packaging (reduction of

food wastage)

– Improved protection (short shelf-life foods)

– Active packaging (anti-microbial packaging, oxygen scavengers

– Intelligent packaging

• Freshness/spoilage indicators (as replacement of “best before” or

“expiry” dates)


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