Kellogg Company and TerraCycle Launch Pringles UK Recycling Program

(Photo Credit: Like the Grand Canyon, Flickr Creative Commons)

by | Oct 29, 2018

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Pringles

(Photo Credit: Like the Grand Canyon, Flickr Creative Commons)

Kellogg Company and TerraCycle struck a deal that will allow consumers in the United Kingdom to return empty Pringles cans starting in December. Through the new program, shoppers can send the cans to TerraCycle, which plans to turn them into pellets for making products like benches and fence posts.

The UK Recycling Association trade organization called Pringles cans “villains” of the recycling world due to their metal bases, plastic caps, metal tear-off lids, and foil-lined cardboard sleeves, BBC environment analyst Roger Harrabin reported last year. Simon Ellin, the association’s CEO, said the cans are a nightmare because it’s impossible to separate the parts.

Although Kellogg’s Pringles cans are still not currently recyclable in the UK, the partnership with recycling business TerraCycle provides a consistent nationwide solution for consumers, the two companies say. Consumers will be invited to send in empty cans using free labels. In exchange, senders receive a charitable donation for each container that can be redeemed for the school, charity, or nonprofit of their choice.

In related move, Kellogg’s launched a project in Europe to transition the company’s cereal pouches to a recycle-ready material by late 2019. The change is expected to remove approximately 480 metric tons of non-recyclable packaging from the company’s supply chain each year, according to Kellogg’s.

Globally, the American multinational food manufacturing company recently committed to working toward 100% reusable, recyclable or compostable packaging by the end of 2025. Citing the Ellen MacArthur Foundation figure that only 14% of all plastic packaging gets collected for recycling globally, Kellogg Company chairman and CEO Steve Cahillane said, “It’s imperative we are part of a solution that ensures a healthy and sustainable planet for all people around the world.”

“We cannot accomplish this ambitious goal alone,” Lou Massari, senior director of global packaging for Kellogg Company, said about the new packaging target. “We will collaborate with new and existing external partners, our customers, and other innovators to identify packaging solutions that protect and enhance our foods.”

In 2013, Kellogg’s was among the first wave of companies adding How2Recycle labels to their products. Last year the company reported that 71% of their packaging material came from recycled content, with the rest being from verified sustainable sources.

“We recently reduced the weight of our US cereal liners by 17%,” the report says. “As a result, we’ve eliminated 87,000 kilograms of polymer from the waste stream while continuing to ensure the freshness of our foods.”


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