In November last year, dairy producer Fonterra introduced 'Naked Mozz' – a mozzarella wrapped in only the most basic plastic wrap, a move the company says will spare 330 tonnes of cardboard each year, translating to annual savings of more than $825,000.
The company moves over 12,000 tonnes of its Perfect Italiano Mozzarella from the company’s Stanhope manufacturing site in northern Victoria to be shredded at a secondary processing site in Tullamarine in Melbourne every year.
Much of this ends up on the top of pizzas across Australia, and even travels to places such as Singapore, Malaysia, and Hong Kong.
Transporting this massive amount of cheese in 10-kilogram blocks for processing typically meant considerable packaging – including 600,000 cardboard cartons.
Jenny Phillips, Fonterra Australia's sustainable packaging manager, said that this initiative is just one of 26 sustainable packaging projects in progress.
“Our aim is to ensure that by 2025, 100 per cent of Fonterra Australia's dairy product packaging will be reusable, recyclable, or compostable. Additionally, we're targeting zero waste to landfill by the same year, and reducing waste in our supply chain is pivotal to achieving this goal.
"While the mozzarella is still securely wrapped in plastic which is crucial for food safety and waste reduction, eliminating cardboard will significantly bolster our sustainability efforts.
“The benefits extend beyond reduced cardboard use. This initiative eliminates the need for frequent cardboard waste collections from the Tullamarine site and minimises manual handling to enhance the health and safety of our on-site team.
“This latest packaging project underscores that our much-loved dairy products can be delivered sustainably without compromising on the quality our customers expect,” she concluded.
