Brownes Dairy is the first company in Australia to use Tetra Pak Craft unbleached cartons for its milk packaging, made from renewable plant-based materials that are recyclable, sustainably sourced, and chain of custody certified.
The one-litre cartons, to be rolled out for Brownes Dairy’s fresh milk, are a natural brown colour, which is a bold shift in the milk category where the packaging is stereotypically white.
Brownes Dairy was the first company to make the switch to Tetra Pak's Tetra Rex Plant Based cartons made from renewable plant-based materials in 2019. Tetra Pak Craft milk cartons combine unbleached paperboard into Brownes’ current repertoire of Tetra Rex Plant Based milk cartons, and will promote the dairy company's partnership with Trillion Trees*, a not-for-profit organisation focused on land reforestation in Western Australia.
Tetra Pak Craft board requires less processing (skipping the bleaching step), adding to the carton's sustainability credentials.
This latest move to unbleached board is the next step in Brownes' quest to have the “most sustainable milk packaging on the market”, and one which will have a noticeable visual impact on shelf.
As Brownes Dairy CEO Natalie Sarich-Dayton says, “Now our consumers can actually see that the cartons are made from a renewable source that has a lower carbon impact on climate change.”
The milk cartons introduced by Brownes Dairy contain plastic (polyethylene) that is made from plant-based polymers. These plant-based polymers are chemically identical to fossil-based plastic. The big difference is that because the polymers are derived from sugarcane, a renewable plant resource, they have a lower climate impact and so are deemed better for the environment.
It is important to note, since there is a lot of consumer confusion associated with the term 'plant-based packaging', that these plant-based polymers are not biodegradable plastics and behave in the same way as virgin plastic.
By using plant-based polyethylene material in the cartons, the carbon footprint of this packaging is reduced by 16 per cent over regular milk cartons, according to Brownes Dairy.
“Brownes Dairy wants to ensure that the next generation of Australian families not only get to enjoy the goodness and freshness of our products, but they can do so knowing we use the most sustainable milk cartons available,” said Sarich-Dayton.
Tetra Pak Oceania MD Andrew Pooch said, “Brownes Dairy is driving sustainable packaging as a business priority and leading the way for the food and beverage industry.
Commenting on the overall sustainability of the carton, Pooch said, "There is a lot of focus on recycling at the moment, but in reality, over 99 per cent of packaging impacts to climate change has occurred before products hit the shelves,” said Andrew Pooch, managing director of Tetra Pak.
“To make a real contribution to reducing the impact on climate change the whole life cycle of consumer products needs to be considered, including the source, manufacturing and transport.”
The carton is 100 per cent recyclable, and Tetra Pak is actively working with government and other partners to improve onshore recycling capability.
In partnership with the NSW government and Closed Loop, Tetra Pak has invested in a recycling facility that turns everyday household waste, such as milk cartons into building products.
Opening in late 2022, this is the first of many new initiatives to improve Australia’s recycling capability onshore.
Studies suggest 90 per cent of Australian consumers are concerned about sustainability with all age segments, having the view that businesses and brands should be most responsible for the impact on the environment.
* As part of its sustainability focus, Brownes has partnered with Trillion Trees Australia, and environmental restoration not-for-profit organisation, to contribute to the challenge of planting a trillion trees to help address climate change through ecosystem restoral.
The community-based organisation has been active since 1979 in WA and has planted more than 15 million native trees alongside 80,000 volunteers.
In 2014, it achieved the Guinness World Record for the largest simultaneous planting of trees – 104,450 planted in one hour.
