Niels Hougaard, Managing Director of Tetra Pak Arabia, explains Packaging MEA on what the company is doing to make food packaging more sustainable, efficient and better for the planet
Packaging MEA (PMEA): Tell us a bit about your new fibre-based barrier to replace the aluminium layer, and how it helps Tetra Pak meet its sustainability goals.
Niels Hougaard (NH): The aluminium layer currently used in food carton packages plays a critical role in ensuring food safety; but even though it is thinner than human hair, it contributes to a third of the greenhouse gas emissions linked to base materials used by Tetra Pak.
A commercial technology validation was conducted in Japan starting in late 2020, using a polymer-based barrier to replace the aluminium layer. This helped to understand the value chain implications of the change and to quantify the carbon footprint reduction. It also confirmed adequate oxygen protection for vegetable juice, while enabling increased recycling rates in a country where recyclers favour aluminium-free cartons.
At Tetra Pak, we put great emphasis on collaborations; not just with our customers and suppliers, but also with an ecosystem of startups, universities and tech companies, providing us access to cutting-edge competencies, technologies and manufacturing facilities.
With the support of our partners and a strong determination to achieve our sustainability and food safety ambitions, we are on the right track.
PMEA: What are your plans with this fibre-based barrier here in the MEA region?
NH: A pilot batch of single-serve packs featuring the fibre-based barrier are currently on shelf for a commercial consumer test, with further technology validation scheduled for later in 2022. The testing activities will continue in 2023 and the target markets for commercial deployment will be defined by the tests’ results and customer needs. MEA is important for us to introduce new innovations on sustainability.
PMEA: How has Tetra Pak contributed to MEA’s moves toward a circular economy?
NH: Our sustainability strategy is founded on our commitment to a low-carbon circular economy. Such an economy should consider not just recycling and reuse, but also the climate impact of raw materials and manufacturing.
Plant-based raw materials such as wood and sugarcane are essential to our low-carbon circular economy approach. For decades, our carton packages have contained about 70% renewable fibres, sourced from sustainable forestry and as such already a benchmark in sustainable food packaging.
In Saudi Arabia, we recently partnered on the RIYcycle project with two leading recycling companies, Obeikan Paper Industries (OPI) and Saudi Top Plastic (STP) factory. With a joint investment of over €3million, where Tetra Pak has provided state-of-theart recycling equipment and technological competence, the project aims to increase collection and recycling. This project is one of our most significant projects in the Arabia area.
Globally, we are on the right track to achieving our 2030 and Putting the world and its people first
Niels Hougaard, Managing Director of Tetra Pak Arabia, explains Packaging MEA on what the company is doing to make food packaging more sustainable, efficient and better for the planet 2050 goals, and we have already hit some important milestones, such as:
• Met our 2020 climate goal, decoupling economic growth from GHG emissions across the full value chain, scope 1, 2, 3 (-19% versus 2010) • Received outstanding double “A” score for climate, and named “Supplier Engagement Leader” by CDP.
• Technical validation with limited commercial launch of first aseptic package with non-foil barrier.
• Introduced carbon-reduced and carbon-neutral package certification and labels with Carbon Trust, and launched Tetra Rex Plant-based package with carbon-neutral label in Ireland.
• Launched low-energy equipment line for processing still drinks
• Extended the use of renewable electricity across our factories to 83% in 2020, up from 69% in 2019, surpassing our target of 80%.
• Sold 13.5billion plant-based packages and 7.5bn plant-based caps, made from segregated plant-based polymers, fully traceable to their origins.
PMEA: Recently Tetra Pak has announced its recycling facility in Riyadh. Can you give us some facts and figures?
NH: Together with OPI and STP, we have created a hub that can recycle materials from used carton packages. The new line for carton recycling has an expected capacity of 8,000 tonnes a year, while the new plant for PolyAl has a capacity of around 4,000 tonnes of granules per year. Cartons are sent through a pulping process to separate the paper fibres and the PolyAl.
OPI recovers the paper fibres in the line provided by Tetra Pak and cleans, presses and dries them before converting them into high-quality recycled duplex board. The PolyAl resulting from the carton recycling process at OPI becomes a raw material collected by STP and dry-cleaned.
In the line provided by Tetra Pak, it is then put through an extrusion process that turns it into plastic granules, which are sold to plastic recyclers and used as a raw material for products such as pallets and crates.
PMEA: Is Tetra Pak working with brand owners, converters and government bodies to introduce legislative compliance and ordinance sustainable packaging solutions?
NH: Achieving our sustainability targets and ambitions can only happen through the entire value chain, with partnerships between public and private sectors, aligning efforts and actions towards a more sustainable future. RIYcycle in Saudi Arabia is an example of this.
The UAE, as a leading example in the region, started a significant initiative to develop and implement policies that enable a low-carbon circular economy, through the creation of the Policy Committee of the Circular Economy Council, which includes the private sector and several ministries.
Tetra Pak is a member of the Policy Committee, chairing the Sustainable Manufacturing working group. The focus is on policy recommendations for packaging waste management and regulations, highlighting the importance of adoption of Extended Producer Responsibility for more efficient collection and recycling schemes.
PMEA: With F&B packaging leading the per-capita consumption of packaging globally and particularly in this region, how is Tetra Pak contributing to minimising waste?
NH: In this region, around 15,000 tonnes of post-consumer carton packages are generated every year. We are working with local partners in the private and public sector to improve collection and boost recycling capacity to ensure there is a second life for carton packages after consumption.
We are also improving the operational efficiencies in our factories and working with customers on improvements on filing lines to reduce the waste generated during operations.
PMEA: What are the biggest challenges facing packaging sustainability and how can they be addressed?
NH: Raw materials & sourcing: Global demand for primary raw materials is expected to double by 2060. Fossil-based plastic and aluminium – two important elements of food packaging due to their protective attributes – is on the rise. The production of these raw materials drains natural resources and causes significant carbon emissions.
Replacing these with responsibly sourced, plant-based renewable materials can reduce carbon emissions and protect biodiversity and our natural ecosystems.
Reducing greenhouse gas emissions: The global food system accounts for 26% of greenhouse gas emissions – greater than shopping and aviation. Global warming could reach 4.1 degrees by the end of the century. Using renewable energy and materials to produce food packaging while focusing on more efficient distribution can help reduce emissions.
Securing enough safe food for a growing population: A third of food produced globally is lost or wasted, while 8.9% of the world’s population suffers from hunger. By 2050, the population will reach 9.1billion, requiring 70% more food. Using advanced food processing technologies and protective right-sized packaging can help reduce food waste and improve food availability.
Pushing the limits of recycling with systems thinking: Only 13.5% of global waste is recycled. We need to enhance recycling by design, focusing on improving recyclability of the package and building integrated systems to support collection, sorting and recycling.
Reducing end-of-life impact on nature: Plastic can only be recycled a limited number of times before it reaches end-of-life. By using paper-based packaging, reducing t plastic and increasing renewable materials, we can minimise the impact on nature.
PMEA: Would you like to add anything else?
NH: Packaging plays a critical role in global food delivery, but it can also cause problems for the planet. At Tetra Pak, we believe paper-based cartons have the greatest potential to solve these challenges. By using responsibly sourced plant-based or recycled materials, neutralising carbon emissions, improving recycling and keeping materials in use longer, we can create packaging that secures food availability while protecting nature.