Nestle Oceania has switched to recyclable paper packaging supplied by Amcor for its Smarties confectionery range in Australia, upgrading its manufacturing lines to accommodate the material change.
While some Smarties packs sold in the country are already in paper, the change sees all plastic packaging replaced with new recyclable paper packaging.
According to Amcor, the new packaging is made from sustainably sourced thermoformable paper and is dynamic enough to be printed on with either flexographic or gravure technology and finished with a heat or cold-seal adhesive.
The new packaging technology, with its various applications, is used across the Smarties Chocolate Block and Bar product range. It is fully recyclable and can be disposed of in Australian paper recycling bins.
Working closely with Nestlé, Amcor says it has leveraged its global R&D resources to develop this next generation packaging solution which performs when it comes to sustainability and consumer convenience, while also maintaining the highest levels of product protection.
Simon Roy, vice president and general manager, Amcor Flexibles Australia & New Zealand commented, “This packaging is a great example of Amcor’s innovative and collaborative way of thinking to help our customers meet end-consumer needs. It also reaffirms our commitment to ensuring all our packaging is designed to be recyclable or reusable by 2025.”
The change is part of a global move for Nestle, making Smarties the first global confectionery brand entirely sold in recyclable paper packaging, removing approximately 250 million plastic packs sold globally every year.
The paper used across the range is all sourced sustainably, including coated paper, paper labels, and cartonboard. The Australasian Recycling Label is also included on all packs to raise consumer awareness and to ensure the packs are recycled properly.
“Shifting Smarties packaging to recyclable paper is an important step in realising Nestle’s ambition to reduce our use of virgin plastic by a third by 2025,” said Chris O’Donnell, Nestle’s general manager Confectionery.
“Developing safe and convenient paper-based solutions for Smarties has required pioneering new materials and testing by Nestle packaging experts at both our Confectionery R&D Centre in the UK and the Nestle Institute of Packaging Sciences in Switzerland.
“We also had to invest in upgrading all the factories that make Smarties. The paper packaging requires careful handling, so we needed to adapt our manufacturing lines to allow for the new formats.”
The Nestle factory at Campbellfield in Melbourne upgraded its manufacturing process to shift to paper packaging, investing in new production equipment, including a new wrapper machine.
